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A new sales record for the sale of semiconductors was set in April, 2010, according the latest figures issued by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA). Worldwide semiconductor sales reached US$23.6 billion, an increase of 2.2% from March sales of US$23.1 billion, resulting in sales exceeding the previous monthly record set in November 2007.

Semiconductor sales in the first four months of 2010 were reported to have reached US$92.6 billion compared to US$60.1 billion for the like period of 2009, an increase of 54.2%

“Global sales of semiconductors grew at a healthy rate in April, surpassing the previous monthly record level of November 2007,” said SIA President George Scalise. “As expected, both the year-on-year and sequential growth rates moderated slightly. The unusually high year-on-year comparison is a reflection of the trough of the recession in early 2009 compared to strong demand today.

“Important contributors to current growth of semiconductor sales include the worldwide adoption of 3G wireless communications and consequent investment in infrastructure and recovery of demand from the enterprise, automotive, and industrial sectors.

 “Going forward, we expect semiconductor sales will return to historical seasonal patterns. Future growth of the industry remains heavily dependent on the continued global economic recovery, and in particular, on continued growth in the developing markets that are the largest demand drivers for our products,” Scalise concluded.

All regions continued to show positive growth month-on-month. The Americas experienced the most growth in April (3.1%), while Europe showed the least growth (0.5%) in the month.