Page 3 - mayjune_042722.indd

TAP TIMES May-June 2022

Volume 13, Number 5

Test, Assembly & Packaging TIMES

Semiconductors in the time of COVID

rognosticators
who follow the
semiconductor
industry — and
they are legion
— have faced a
rough couple of
years forecasting
P future business
trends.

Ron Iscoff, Editor
roniscoff@gmail.com
A mug shot of the now-ubiquitous COVID-19 virus (CDC)

In pre-COVID days, predicting where the of SARS COVID-2, (Severe Acute Repira-
semiconductor industry was headed wasn’t tory Syndrome) that struck Asia in Novem-
necessarily easy, but it was somewhat pre- ber 2002. While SARS disrupted travel
dictable. The Corona virus was, however, and business in Asia, only 8,469 cases
transformative. We learned that business were reported.
as usual was now a moving target.
WSTS forecast
A cause for concern World Semiconductor Trade Statistics
On January 30, 2020, the World Health (WSTS) is considered the authoritative
Organization (WHO) said a new virus, CO- source for monthly industry shipment sta-
VID-19, was a cause for international con- tistics.
cern. By March 11, 2020, however, WHO’s
comments had escalated. Typically, WSTS member companies meet,
often at large trade shows such as SEMI-
The health organization then said that the CON West, several times a year to ham-
virus could now be characterized as a pan- mer out a forecast.
demic — a disease that has grown from
a local or regional one to worldwide in its In June 2020, however, WSTS posted a
spread. notice that, “Due to the COVID-19 situa-
tion, WSTS was unable to have a forecast
Shrugged-off meeting.” Its forecast, it said, was devel-
Still, at the time of WHO’s announcement, oped using an online forecast tool.
the virus was mostly shrugged-off by the
U.S. government, business and and in- The forecast called for the semiconductor
dustry. To many, it seemed to be a replay next page