Dec. 28, 2001 – Taipei, Taiwan – The Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK) of the semi-official Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) estimates that Taiwan’s market for chipmaking equipment will dive 56% in value to US$4.9 billion in 2001 from last year’s US$9 billion.

The center forecasts the Taiwan market will inch up barely 10% next year to US$5.2 billion, according to the Commercial Times

The world equipment market is estimated to post at US$31.5 billion this year, down 27.5% from last year’s US$47.6 billion. The Taiwan market research organization warns that the Taiwan market for the equipment will have a more serious shrinkage than will the world market.

IEK specialists say Taiwan’s recession is worse than the world’s because chipmaking factories in Taiwan and Korea have suffered bigger losses than have Japanese and American manufacturers this year.

IEK’s study shows that, by monthly breakdown, the world market in 1999 and 2000 registered growth every month, compared with the slip every month this year. The worst monthly recession of this year fell in September.

IEK points out that Taiwan’s market value in the first nine months posted only US$2.8 billion, down 61.8% from the US$7.3 billion for the comparable period of last year. The recession pace is even worse than the 31.7% estimated for the world market, showing that Taiwan’s chipmaking factories have more idle capacity than do factories abroad.

The research outfit estimates that the idle capacities at world chipmaking factories will not be completely filled up until 2003, at which time spending on equipment will begin to increase.