Signs of uplift for struggling chip industry

The Semiconductor Industries Association (SIA) says it can see light at the end of the tunnel in the chip market this year and next.

The US trade association said that, while overall sales of semiconductors are expected to drop 11 per cent this year compared with last year, there are signs that the industry will grow by an estimated 3.5 per cent this quarter.

Although sales of microprocessors have remained steady during the year, with Intel showing increased turnover as well as profit, other companies selling memory and support components have had a disastrous year.

Memory, in particular, shows little sign of recovery, said the SIA. But the association predicted that during 1997 the whole industry will grow by 7.4 per cent.