Wafer Shipments Forecast to Rise Through 2019

　　Total shipments of blank silicon wafers are expected to reach an all-time high this year and continue rising in 2018 and 2019, according to the SEMI trade association.

　　SEMI (San Jose, Calif.) forecasts that polished and epitaxial silicon shipments for semiconductor applications (excluding solar) will total 11.5 billion square inches in 2017, up 8 percent from 2016. Shipments are expected to rise to 11.8 billion square inches next year and 12.4 billion square inches in 2019, SEMI said.

　　"Silicon shipment volumes are expected to ship at historic highs for this year and into 2019," said Dan Tracy, senior director of industry research and statistics at SEMI, in a press statement. "The expectation is for steady annual growth due to the proliferation of connected devices required for automotive, medical, wearables, and high-performance computing applications.”