Chip sales dip for first time in 30 months on Chinese market slump

Shrinking demand from US tech giants also blamed

20190307N memory chips

Semiconductor sales have slowed since the second half of last year. (Photo by Wataru Ito)

HIDEAKI RYUGEN and KENICHI YAMADA, Nikkei staff writers

TOKYO/SEOUL -- The worldwide semiconductor market shrank for the first time in years this January as demand from U.S. technology leaders and China cooled.

Sales receded 5.7% on the year to $35.5 billion, according to World Semiconductor Trade Statistics. The figure, based on a three-month moving average, marks the first decline in 30 months.

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