Semiconductor making equipment spend on the slide

Global processor equipment manufacturing slows along with sales

Purchases of semiconductor manufacturing equipment worldwide are expected to decline 5.5 per cent to $35.8bn (£23.2bn) for the full 2013 year, according to Gartner's latest research.

Bob Johnson, research vice president at Gartner, said that weak semiconductor market conditions, which continued into the first quarter of 2013, generated downward pressure on new equipment purchases. Logic spending would be the strongest area in 2013, as a few of the top players are ramping up production at sub-30nm nodes.

"However, semiconductor equipment quarterly revenues are beginning to improve and positive movement in the book-to-bill ratio indicates that spending for equipment will pick up later in the year," he said.

Things should improve in 2014, with spending on semiconductor kit to rise 14.2 per cent, slowing somewhat again in 2015.

"Looking beyond 2013, we expect that the current economic malaise will have worked its way through the industry and spending will follow a generally increasing pattern in all sectors throughout the rest of the forecast period," Johnson said.

Gartner also said that capital spending will decrease 3.5 per cent in 2013, "as major producers remain cautious in the face of market weakness".

The foundry segment, however, will see an increase in spending of about 14.3 per cent this year, even though integrated device manufacturers (IDMs), and semiconductor assembly and test services (SATS) providers will experience a slowdown.

"Beyond 2013, memory surges in 2014 and 2015 with a cyclical decline in 2016, while logic returns to a steady growth pattern," according to a Gartner statement.