SAN FRANCISCO—The global semiconductor materials market grew by 7 percent in 2011 compared to 2010, posting a new all-time record for the second straight year, according to the fab tool vendor trade group SEMI.
Semiconductor materials sales rose to $47.86 billion in 2011, eclipsing the record $44.85 billion achieved in 2010,
SEMI (San Jose, Calif.) said. The third highest total on record was $42.67 billion in 2007.
Total wafer fabrication materials and packaging materials sales were $24.20 billion and $23.67 billion, respectively, in 2011, SEMI said. Comparable revenues for these segments in 2010 were $23.05 billion for wafer fabrication materials and $21.80 billion for packaging materials, according to the trade group.
Steady revenue growth in all materials categories contributed to the year-over-year growth of the total semiconductor materials market, though currency effects were a contributing factor to this growth, SEMI said.
For the second year in a row, Taiwan was the largest consumer of semiconductor materials, with $10.04 billion in total sales due to its large foundry and advanced packaging base, SEMI said. The materials market in Japan contracted 1 percent, while all other regional materials markets experienced modest growth, SEMI said.
The market in South Korea was driven by fab materials, while the market in China was driven by packaging materials in 2011, SEMI said.
