SEMICONDUCTOR SALES ROCKET WITH HIGH-TECHS 20 PERCENT HIKE OVER 2001.Byline: Staff and Wire Services Worldwide semiconductor sales increased to $12.5 billion in October, a 1.8 percent jump from September and a 20 percent rise from 2001, a trade group reported Friday. The report marks the third quarter of rising sales for an industry that is slowly recovering from the high-tech downturn Downturn The transition point between a rising, expanding economy to a falling, contracting one. downturn A decline in security prices or economic activity following a period of rising or stable prices or activity. . ``If there are any doubts remaining about the strength of the global chip industry, a healthy recovery continues as we move into the fourth quarter,'' said George Scalise, president of the Semiconductor Industry Association. Sales of chips used in wireless devices grew most briskly brisk adj. brisk·er, brisk·est 1. Marked by speed, liveliness, and vigor; energetic: had a brisk walk in the park. 2. as new subscribers are added in Asia and consumers elsewhere replace older hand sets with newer models. Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. has shown some signs of improvement from the increased chip sales. In the Camarillo-based company's most recent quarter, revenues rose 2 percent to $38.1 million from $37.2 million a year earlier. Vitesse posted a net income of $3.7 million vs. a loss of 59.2 million in the same period a year ago. Faced with a slumping Slumping is a categorical description of an area of techniques for the forming of glass through the use of heating glass to the point where it becomes plastic. It is generally formed by the force of gravity. market, Vitesse slashed slash v. slashed, slash·ing, slash·es v.tr. 1. To cut or form by cutting with forceful sweeping strokes: slash a path through the underbrush. 2. 200 jobs as part of a cost-cutting move this summer. But ``with the repositioning repositioning Laparoscopic surgery The changing of a Pt's position during a procedure to improve access or visualization of the operative field, which may be linked to complications, as it changes anatomic planes of operation. Cf Laparoscopic surgery. and the cost-cutting announced, I am confident that we have adopted a prudent strategy to take advantage of markets that we believe will grow,'' said Lou Tomasetta, president and chief executive, in a printed statement. Vitesse shares added 2 cents to close at $3.32 Friday on the Nasdaq market. Semiconductor manufacturer Diodes Inc. bounced back in the third quarter after enduring the sectorwide drubbing that ended a string of 44 consecutive positive quarters and decimated earnings last year. Revenues hit $30.3 million, up from $22.7 million in 2001. Shareholders saw earnings of $1.8 million, compared with net loss of $847,000 a year ago, earning them 20 cents per share Cents per share The amount of a mutual fund's dividend or capital gains distributions that a shareholder will receive for each share owned. . Executives said the Westlake Village-based company's ability to market a ``next-generation product'' provided a much-needed foundation. Diodes shares rose 39 cents, or 3.71 percent, to close at $10.90 Friday on the Nasdaq market. Flash memory and digital signal processors A digital signal processor (DSP) is a specialized microprocessor designed specifically for digital signal processing, generally in real-time computing. Characteristics of typical Digital Signal Processors
Chips for personal computers, which make up the largest portion of the semiconductor market with 30 percent of total chip consumption, also saw increases. Microprocessor microprocessor, integrated circuit containing the arithmetic, logic, and control circuitry required to interpret and execute instructions from a computer program. revenue rose 6.5 percent while dynamic Random Access Memory Dynamic random access memory (DRAM) is a type of random access memory that stores each bit of data in a separate capacitor within an integrated circuit. Since real capacitors leak charge, the information eventually fades unless the capacitor charge is refreshed periodically. sales were up 1.2 percent, the association reported. Europe saw the strong sales growth of 6.2 percent, followed by Japan with 2 percent and Asia-Pacific with 1 percent. Sales in the Americas rose 0.5 percent. The San Jose-based Semiconductor Industry Association has represented U.S. chip manufacturers since 1977. Its members account for more than 90 percent of U.S. chip production. |
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