[special topic on SMM] the chip and semiconductor market continues to be hot, and the price of silicon rises by more than 200% for enterprises to expand production capacity.

Published: Jun 23, 2021 16:45

The market of chip semiconductors continues to be hot.

The stock market has continued to rise since May. According to statistics, the third-generation semiconductor sector has risen nearly 40% since early May, the automotive chip sector has risen by more than 30%, and the domestic chip sector has risen nearly 30%. The performance of individual stocks is even more eye-catching. Shilan Weiwei's share price is up more than 80% from the beginning of May, China Resources Micro is up nearly 70% from the beginning of May, Fuman Electronics is up 133% in just one month, Sai Microelectronics is also up 117%, and other stocks are also up one after another.

The shortage of chips hits the global auto market.

Behind the sharp rise in stock prices is the trouble caused by the shortage of chips. it is reported that many car companies around the world have reduced their car production or even stopped producing some models due to the shortage of chips. the affected car companies include Ford, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Honda, Volkswagen and a series of well-known brands. Earlier this year, a cold snap in Texas caused widespread power outages across the state, disrupting chip delivery for about four weeks. The sudden fire of Renesa Electronics, a Japanese chip supplier, made the situation even worse. Recently, the suspension of work in Taiwan and the closure of Malaysia have further worsened the situation.

The chip price skyrocketed and the giant in the industry set a record in revenue.

Chip shortage is difficult to solve, a "core" difficult to find the situation has not been reversed, relevant companies have announced price increases, chip prices skyrocketing, industry giant revenue record. Take a NXP as an example, the price was about 15 yuan a year ago, but it soared to more than 100 yuan or even close to 200 yuan a year later. In the first quarter of 2021, the total output value of the top 10 foundry manufacturers broke through the single-quarter record high, reaching 22.75 billion US dollars (about 1451 yuan), an increase of 1451 compared with the previous quarter. Under the chip shortage, the wafer production capacity is seriously insufficient, and the production capacity of TSMC, the leading foundry foundry, has appeared in a "second light" situation, and the current TSMC order has been arranged until the end of 2022. According to public reports, TSMC will cancel discounts to customers and raise prices in disguise starting from the end of 2021. Huang Chongren, chairman of LSMC, also said that since 2020, wafer foundry prices have increased by 30% to 40%, and supply and demand continue to be tight, and the price increase will continue. LSMC's capacity in 2022 has been fully booked by customers and is now booked for 2023.

The price of silicon at the end of raw materials is all the way up.

Affected by the shortage of chip semiconductors, the price of silicon at the end of the raw material has also gone up all the way. Over the past year, the price of polysilicon has continued to rise. The spot price of SMM polysilicon is 217 yuan per kilogram on June 23, which is 216% higher than that of the same period last year. Polysilicon prices continue to rise due to the imbalance between supply and demand of polysilicon production and the situation that supply falls short of demand. SMM believes that as it takes time for polysilicon to reach production, even if Q4 first-line silicon enterprises put into production as scheduled, it will not be able to form an effective supply, which means that it is difficult for polysilicon prices to return to normal operating range this year.

"Click to view SMM silicon raw material quotation

The lead time of the chip continues to extend and the downstream is miserable.

In addition to the sharp increase in prices, the chip delivery time is also increasing, with the semiconductor delivery cycle increasing to 16 weeks in March, far exceeding the peak level in 2018, and the chip delivery time reached 18 weeks in May. The longest period since tracking data (2017). The sharp rise in chip prices has led to misery downstream, and some manufacturers said that at present, some orders cannot be taken because of a shortage of chips.

The major enterprises have expanded their production capacity one after another.

Under the current market, the development of domestic chips is extremely urgent. Major enterprises have expanded their production capacity, and Chengdu Shilan Semiconductor, a subsidiary of Shilan Micro, plans to purchase nine 12-inch wafer epitaxial furnaces, testers and other equipment from the affiliated company Xiamen Shilan Jike, with a total transaction value of 46.3117 million yuan. Sanan Optoelectronics Hunan third Generation Semiconductor Industrial Park project has been put into production and semiconductor related projects have been vigorously developed. China Resources Micro announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary intends to set up a joint venture with the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund Phase II Co., Ltd. and Chongqing Xiyong Microelectronics Industrial Park Development Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of 5 billion yuan. Invest in the construction of a 12-inch power semiconductor wafer production line. Relevant enterprises speed up the pace of development, domestic chips ushered in the peak of development.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or for more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn
For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn
Related News
[Flash | Chile's July Imacec Falls 1.5% YoY, Steepest Monthly Drop Since 2022 as Mining Slumps 9.3%]
3 hours ago
[Flash | Chile's July Imacec Falls 1.5% YoY, Steepest Monthly Drop Since 2022 as Mining Slumps 9.3%]
Read More
[Flash | Chile's July Imacec Falls 1.5% YoY, Steepest Monthly Drop Since 2022 as Mining Slumps 9.3%]
[Flash | Chile's July Imacec Falls 1.5% YoY, Steepest Monthly Drop Since 2022 as Mining Slumps 9.3%]
Chile's central bank reported on September 1 that the July Imacec economic activity index fell 1.5% year-on-year on an unadjusted basis. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the index fell 2.1% year-on-year and 1.7% month-on-month, marking the steepest monthly decline since 2022. The bank attributed the drop mainly to mining, which fell a significant 9.3%, primarily due to weather conditions, followed by lower ore grades and equipment maintenance that disrupted normal production operations. Many of the affected mines are copper-molybdenum associated deposits. Since molybdenum concentrate is recovered as a byproduct of the flotation process used to treat copper sulfide ore, the disruption to processing plants also curtailed molybdenum output.
3 hours ago
[SMM Chromium Flash] Potential Valterra-Northam Deal Could Reshape South Africa's Chrome Concentrate Landscape
15 hours ago
[SMM Chromium Flash] Potential Valterra-Northam Deal Could Reshape South Africa's Chrome Concentrate Landscape
Read More
[SMM Chromium Flash] Potential Valterra-Northam Deal Could Reshape South Africa's Chrome Concentrate Landscape
[SMM Chromium Flash] Potential Valterra-Northam Deal Could Reshape South Africa's Chrome Concentrate Landscape
Northam Platinum said on August 25 that it had received an unsolicited, exploratory and non-binding approach from a major South African platinum group metals (PGM) producer and subsequently initiated a strategic, competitive process to solicit proposals from interested parties. Valterra Platinum is widely understood to be the potential bidder, while Impala Platinum and Sibanye-Stillwater have indicated that they are not interested. Northam has set December 1 as the deadline for interested parties to submit proposals, with any potential transaction potentially taking the form of an asset-level transaction or a corporate transaction. The potential deal also has implications for South Africa's chrome concentrate market, as Northam has rapidly expanded its chrome output from UG2 processing. Northam's FY2026 chrome concentrate production reached a record 1.69 million mt, while its Vision 2031 strategy targets more than 2 million mt of chrome concentrate sales over the next five years. Valterra is also targeting chrome concentrate sales of more than 2 million mt under its growth strategy. A transaction involving the two companies could therefore significantly increase the strategic importance and scale of chrome within a combined PGM portfolio, although the final structure and any impact on chrome production, processing and sales would depend on the outcome of the competitive process.
15 hours ago
Production cut benefits materialize as futures and spot trends diverge; silicon metal prices remain in a stalemate [SMM Silicon Industry Weekly Review]
18 hours ago
Production cut benefits materialize as futures and spot trends diverge; silicon metal prices remain in a stalemate [SMM Silicon Industry Weekly Review]
Read More
Production cut benefits materialize as futures and spot trends diverge; silicon metal prices remain in a stalemate [SMM Silicon Industry Weekly Review]
Production cut benefits materialize as futures and spot trends diverge; silicon metal prices remain in a stalemate [SMM Silicon Industry Weekly Review]
[Production cut benefits materialize, spot and futures diverge, silicon metal prices in stalemate]: This week, spot silicon metal prices consolidated on a strong note. As of September 3, SMM oxygen-blown #553 silicon in east China was at 9,400-9,500 yuan/mt, up 50 yuan/mt WoW, #441 silicon was at 9,500-9,700 yuan/mt, up 50 yuan/mt WoW, and #3303 silicon was at 10,100-10,300 yuan/mt, up 50 yuan/mt WoW. In the futures market, the SI2611 contract moved sideways in the 8,650-8,865 yuan/mt range this week, shot up to 8,865 yuan/mt early in the week before pulling back, and closed at 8,735 yuan/mt on Thursday, down 70 yuan/mt WoW. In terms of market quotes and transactions, after production cuts at large plants in Xinjiang were implemented, silicon enterprises increased their efforts to hold prices firm, low-priced cargoes in the market decreased, silicon enterprises quoted firmly, and some suppliers raised quotes slightly. Affected by long positions taking profits and macro sentiment, silicon metal futures prices pulled back weakly, wait-and-see sentiment in the market intensified, market transactions remained need-based, and the price center consolidated at highs.
18 hours ago