TOKYO -- Global chipmaking leaders South Korea, Taiwan and mainland China likely will drive investment in semiconductor manufacturing equipment to an all-time high this year, with Samsung Electronics and others scrambling to fill roaring demand for memory.
Worldwide sales of chipmaking equipment are forecast to grow 19.8% in 2017 to $49.4 billion, says industry group SEMI, beating the roughly $47.6 billion record set in 2000 amid the dot-com bubble. The group projects sales to balloon a further 8% in 2018 to $53.2 billion, breaking $50 billion for the first time.
