MarketWatch Commentary

EMS companies have been faring well, relatively speaking, and the strategic moves to diversify into new markets with important core capability links has analysts and market researchers generally more bullish than conservative. 

What is particularly interesting, as we continue to watch the ongoing EMS-ODM turf war (cf. MarketWatch Quarterly Vol. 1:1, "EMS/ODM a Mixed Market;" and Vol. 2:2, "Co-Evolution and Organic Growth"), is the varied strategies EMS companies are embracing.  As well presented in the latest MMI (Vol. 20:1, pp. 1-4) report, some EMS companies are following a new, retail path (e.g., Hon Hai's retail outlets); some are expanding to sister industries (e.g., Jabil's venture into solar panels and medical disposables); some are supporting new supply chains for the still fragmented clean/smart technologies (cf. the latest MarketWatch Quarterly Vol. 3:4, now available to subscribers and next week to the public); and some are engaging in more traditional M&A deals to expand their market reach and capabilities (e.g., Celestica's acquisition of Invec Solutions, as reported in MMI Vol. 20:1, pp. 2, 7).

Among the other trends forecasted by market analysts, we should see a resumption of more normal consolidation numbers for small- to mid-sized companies, renewed momentum for regionalization/localization (cf. MarketWatch Quarterly Vol. 2:3, "An Expanding European Microcosm" for more discussions on localization), and continued distinctions between EMS and ODM businesses but with increased "credibility to a hybrid strategy" (MMI Vol. 20:1, p.4).

The next one to three years hold promise for the EMS sector, and based on early analysts' reports for 2010, the new market opportunities may provide important growth for EMS in directions beyond the past 'turf wars' with ODMs.