TSMC, UMC’s 0.25- to 0.35-micron utilization rates to reach 85% in 3Q

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Both Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) expect their 0.25- to 0.35-micron process utilization rates to reach 85% by the end of this quarter on strong demand in the Asia consumer electronics market, said foundry sources.

UMC reportedly will benefit more and has raised its 0.35- and 0.25-micron process utilization rates to 65-75% from below 50% in June. The rates should jump to 80-85% by the end of this quarter on increased DVD chip orders, sources said.

TSMC is expected to benefit less. The company’s 0.18- to 0.35-micron process utilization at its Fabs 3, 5 and 8 is at about 70% and should also reach 85% by the end of this quarter, according to sources.

Taiwanese IC design houses, including Sunplus Technology, MediaTek and ALi, increased orders for chips used in digital still cameras (DSCs), such as digital signal processors (DSPs) and back-end controllers, as well as optical storage chips in the second quarter for the Christmas holidays. Their orders are expected to peak in the third quarter in preparation for Chinese New Year sales, sources added.

Sources from both TSMC and UMC admitted that the pick-up in demand for mature processing is simply seasonal and not necessarily indicative of a broader semiconductor recovery.

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Source: DigiTimes