Semi's Pace is Picking Up in 2013
2012 left us with one positive note, at least: the fourth quarter came in above expectations, pulling the industry to a 2.8% increase for the year over 2011 growth levels, which was a full point above original estimates for 2012. Unfortunately for the semiconductor industry, 2012 only saw growth in the fourth quarter, which seriously affected many companies' revenue along the entire semi value chain, but, since then, trends have been improving.
Medical Electronics Entering Rapid Expansion and Gaining Support
A recent joint venture between United Healthcare, one of the major US health insurance companies, and three major healthcare systems, Baylor Health Care System in Dallas, TX, Dignity Health in San Francisco, CA, and Advocate Health Care in Illinois was recently formed and will operate as a new company, SharedClarity, according to this recent article in InformationWeek.
Read more: Medical Electronics Entering Rapid Expansion and Gaining Support
Industrial Semi Presents New Opportunities and Challenges
Headlines regarding the fate of the PC may not seem directly linked to the specialized market of industrial semiconductors, but in important ways there are links that could benefit industrial consumers.
Read more: Industrial Semi Presents New Opportunities and Challenges
Are the Clouds Clearing for NAND, or Are They Just Starting to Roll In?
We have certainly seen a lot of changes in the NAND market over the past nine months. Last summer, Toshiba led the way in production cuts, forcing acute spikes in pricing. As 2012 came to a close, positive news emanated from NAND manufacturers due to declining customer inventories and enhanced supplier promotion programs. However, those expecting increased SSD demand were left empty-handed. Yet, some of those forecasts were met with good news last month when SSD demand finally took off, causing a shortage in multi-level NAND (MLC).
Read more: Are the Clouds Clearing for NAND, or Are They Just Starting to Roll In?
Open Market Update
Smith is always engaged in the market, no matter what kind of cycle it’s in, but the current market, specifically, offers many ways to support manufacturers across different commodities. Through Smith’s long-time market presence, Smith traders are keenly poised to leverage worldwide purchasing power as well as engineering ingenuity (in the form of Smith’s certified Counterfeit Detection Lab) to provide Smith’s customers uninterrupted supply chains and flexibility in an inflexible market. Below are some of the highlights and trends noted by Smith’s analysts.
More Articles...
Page 2 of 44
