September 19, 2011 – One month ago we reported how a historically strong yen is squeezing many Japanese companies still recovering from the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Now there’s a clear victim within the semiconductor industry: Elpida Memory is cutting back production at its flagship Hiroshima facility and sending more work to Taiwan partner Rexchip Electronics, its majority-owned JV with Powerchip. The company officially says such a shift to Rexchip is only "under consideration" and at the stage of "a feasibility study," but makes it clear why this is being considered: "historically high yen against the dollar and DRAM market deterioration."

Media reports indicate up to 40% of Elpida’s domestic capacity (consisting entirely of Hiroshima) could go to Rexchip — roughly 50,000 wafer/month (300mm) worth of equipment, plus