Worldwide semiconductor sales grow nearly 48 percent in May from a year earlier

SIA: Global chip sales up 48 percent in May

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Worldwide sales of semiconductors increased almost 48 percent in May to $24.7 billion from a year earlier, the Semiconductor Industry Association said Tuesday.

The growth rate declined slightly from the 50.4 percent increase reported in April, the industry group said. Sequentially, sales grew 4.5 percent from April.

“Chip sales have been buoyed by strength in sales of personal computers, cell phones, corporate information technology, industrial applications, and autos,” George Scalise, president of the SIA, said in a statement.

Emerging markets, including China and India, are fueling sales of computers and communications products such as cell phones, he added.

Declining consumer confidence and worries about government spending do not seem to have affected global chip sales, Scalise said, though he added that “given the industry’s sensitivity to economic conditions these issues bear watching in the second half of 2010.”