The 2024 Annual Collective Performance Briefing for the Sci-Tech Innovation Board's Semiconductor Equipment Industry was held on the afternoon of April 28, with seven publicly listed firms including Huafon Test & Control, DeCore, Shenkeda, Rigol, Naike Equipment, Yuanjie Technology, and Xinqu Micro-Equipment participating.
A reporter from The STAR Market Daily attended the event online via the SSE Roadshow Center and asked questions about new growth momentum in the semiconductor equipment industry, strategic adjustments in overseas exports due to changes in international tariff policies, and how to seize opportunities in industry consolidation and M&A.
Multiple semiconductor equipment producers at the briefing reported that their product demand this year has been driven by the growth of AI, 5G, IoT, NEVs, and other emerging applications, leading to a sustained rebound in overall industry prosperity. However, different types of equipment, influenced by market competition and customer capital expenditures, have varying perceptions of market conditions.
With a more comprehensive product range and enhanced competitiveness, domestic semiconductor equipment manufacturers remain optimistic about overseas market growth opportunities despite intense changes in international trade policies. They are strengthening cooperation with domestic and overseas peers, customers, and suppliers to jointly mitigate risks.
AI and other end-use consumption trends are driving upstream equipment demand.
The transmission effect from end-user demand to the semiconductor upstream equipment sector is significant.
At the briefing, Sun Qiang, Chairman of Huafon Test & Control, stated that the semiconductor market's prosperity will continue to rebound in 2024, and the domestic semiconductor packaging and testing equipment sector is showing good growth this year. Despite some fluctuations in the semiconductor equipment industry, as key downstream sectors like consumer electronics gradually recover, the rising demand for chips is boosting procurement needs for semiconductor equipment, driving a sustained recovery.
Specifically, new growth drivers include advanced packaging technologies, and applications such as AI, 5G, and IoT, which are continuously driving up the demand for testing equipment. In response to a question from The STAR Market Daily, Sun Qiang said, the demand for domestic high-performance and high-end analog chip testing related to AI is expected to grow this year, with the development and expansion of large models driving a surge in computing power demand, and localization accelerating. "Currently, the company has a sufficient number of orders on hand. Our existing product, STS8600, has entered the customer validation phase, and we will increase R&D investment, optimize our product mix, and actively expand our customer base."
Huang Yihong, Chairman and General Manager of Shenkeda, also mentioned at the briefing that the development of emerging application areas such as AI, 5G, and IoT is driving the demand for semiconductor chips, thereby boosting the growth of the packaging and testing equipment market. Focused on IC testing equipment R&D, Shenkeda holds a significant share in the turret-type sorter market, with its main products being fast, reliable, and highly adaptable. "As market demand grows and technology evolves, the company will continue to invest in R&D to better adapt to market development."
According to Grand View Research, China's semiconductor packaging market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.5% from 2025-2030. Other data shows that the global AI chip market size is expected to reach 120 billion US dollars in 2025, up significantly from around 45 billion US dollars in 2023. The surge in demand for AI servers and edge computing devices will significantly increase the need for packaging and testing equipment.
Notably, in addition to semiconductor equipment, Shenkeda has also ventured into flat panel lamination equipment, detection auxiliary equipment, and other flat panel display module equipment, and has established partnerships with end-user consumer electronics clients. Its lamination equipment is currently used in smart glasses products.
Huang Yihong stated that according to industry analysis, the smart glasses market is expected to see rapid development in 2025, with gradually increasing market demand. The company will seize market opportunities, quickly respond to market demands and customer customization requirements, and actively establish cooperative relationships with key clients in the smart glasses field. Additionally, it will closely monitor technological advancements in the humanoid robot application area, exploring potential cooperation opportunities and market entry points.
Cheng Zhuo, Chairman of Xinqu Micro-Equipment, stated at the briefing, the global semiconductor market demand in 2024 is experiencing some fluctuations, and many companies' capital expenditures are relatively cautious, making the market competition increasingly fierce, posing challenges to the company's broad semiconductor business market expansion and product sales. Among them, the demand for IC substrate products in the market has declined to some extent, with order numbers and customer procurement scales both decreasing compared to the previous year.
Regarding strategies to address market demand volatility, Cheng Zhuo said that in 2025, the company will continue to deepen its technological layout and product innovation in the broad semiconductor field, focusing on core tracks such as wafer-level packaging, MLC series, LDW field, and IC substrates. It will develop the WLP1000 high-end packaging equipment to optimize large-scale wafer exposure processes, enhancing capacity efficiency and consolidating market position; introduce modularly designed MLC Lite equipment to provide cost-effective lithography solutions; upgrade the resolution and speed of the LDW 350 equipment through optical system and algorithm optimization, meeting chip manufacturing and mask plate production needs; and for IC substrate equipment, upgrade optical and motion control technologies to capture mid-to-high-end market shares.
Huang Mingjiu, Chairman of Naike Equipment, stated that the primary drivers of sustained growth in semiconductor equipment demand are the rapid growth of downstream sectors such as AI, new energy, and automotive electronics. According to statistics, the company currently has over 1.7 billion yuan in orders on hand.
Despite international trade disputes, there are still growth opportunities in overseas markets.
Domestic semiconductor equipment and parts manufacturers, while focusing on localisation, are extending their strategic vision to overseas markets as their product ranges become more complete and competitive, against the backdrop of global industrial recovery. Exports have become a crucial driver of continuous growth for domestic semiconductor equipment. According to SEMI data, the global semiconductor equipment market is expected to reach 121 billion US dollars in 2025, with China's expansion momentum leading the global semiconductor equipment market.
In response to a question from The STAR Market Daily, Sun Qiang, Chairman of Huafon Test & Control, stated at the briefing, the company remains optimistic about markets such as Southeast Asia and Europe, having already established sales and service networks in these regions and cultivated local teams. In response to international trade disputes, the company is strengthening R&D to enhance product competitiveness, optimizing the supply chain to reduce dependence on specific regions, and actively monitoring policies to use rules to protect rights and interests.
Huang Yihong, Chairman and General Manager of Shenkeda, stated, there are many opportunities in overseas markets this year. As the global economy gradually recovers, the demand for semiconductor equipment and flat panel display module production equipment is increasing. Particularly, with the rise of emerging tech industries, such as smart glasses, new market demands are emerging for the company's related equipment. "Our products have certain advantages in technology and cost-effectiveness, with the potential to further expand in overseas markets. Currently, our overseas business is mainly concentrated in Southeast Asia, India, Russia, and other countries and regions."
Huang Yihong also stated that the company will diversify its market layout in the future to reduce dependence on any single country or region, actively expanding into emerging markets. It will closely monitor changes in international trade policies, promptly adjust its market strategy and product layout, and strengthen cooperation and communication with domestic and overseas peers, customers, and suppliers to jointly address the challenges brought by international trade disputes, achieving resource sharing, complementary strengths, and enhancing the company's risk resistance.
Cheng Zhuo, Chairman of Xinqu Micro-Equipment, also stated, there are significant growth opportunities for the company's semiconductor equipment in overseas markets. As the pace of global digitalization accelerates, and emerging fields such as 5G, AI, and IoT flourish, the demand for semiconductor chips continues to rise, driving the growth of the semiconductor equipment market. Meanwhile, the push for self-reliance and control in domestic production is prompting global buyers to seek diversified supply sources, encouraging semiconductor equipment companies to explore more customers overseas.
Huang Mingjiu, Chairman of Naike Equipment, stated that the company's main products fall into two categories: semiconductor packaging equipment and extrusion molding equipment. The semiconductor packaging equipment is primarily for domestic sales, while the extrusion molding equipment has been exported to over 40 countries and regions, mainly in Europe and America.
Regarding recent drastic changes in international tariff policies, Huang Mingjiu stated, the US tariff hike increases the cost for its customers purchasing equipment in China, affecting the company's product sales in the US. "The products sold to US customers are mainly forming molds, a critical unit in plastic extrusion molding production lines, but they account for less than one-tenth of the total line investment. According to investigations, some customers can temporarily accept the increased procurement costs, but if high tariffs persist, the product's cost-effectiveness will weaken, potentially losing some customers and making it harder to acquire new ones."
Huang Mingjiu stated that the company will closely monitor changes in US tariff policies and has taken a series of commercial measures to maintain customer relationships and protect mutual interests.
The trend of equipment integration will further deepen, with leaders evaluating their strategic opportunities.
This year, with NAURA initiating the acquisition of CoreTech and gaining control, it has continued to promote its platform development strategy, accelerating the M&A and integration period in the semiconductor equipment industry. In a research report released by Minsheng Securities in March, it was noted that looking at the development history of overseas equipment leaders, M&A is the mainstream path for expanding business scale. Domestic equipment manufacturers moving from individual niche market layouts to M&A and restructuring may bring synergies in R&D, effectively enhancing overall strength.
At the briefing, multiple leading semiconductor equipment manufacturers acknowledged the industry integration trend, stating that it benefits technological and market synergy, achieving complementary strengths, optimized resource allocation, and enhancing the systematic capabilities of domestic equipment, thus strengthening the competitiveness of the domestic semiconductor industry chain.
Sun Qiang of Huafon Test & Control stated that semiconductor equipment companies can complement their weaknesses through M&A, achieving technological and market synergy, and are expected to enhance competitiveness, break through technical bottlenecks, accelerate localization, and expand domestic and overseas markets in the future.
"The company's M&A direction mainly targets acquisitions with strong synergy with the company's main business, high growth potential, and appropriate scale." Sun Qiang stated that if there are relevant M&A activities in the future, the company will strictly comply with regulations and fulfill information disclosure obligations.
Cheng Zhuo of Xinqu Micro-Equipment believes that the current domestic semiconductor equipment market is highly competitive and homogenized, and corporate integration can optimize resource allocation, avoid redundant R&D, and cutthroat competition. "The integration of domestic semiconductor equipment companies will continue to deepen in the future, accelerating the localization process. For our company, we will carefully consider and evaluate various strategic opportunities and cooperation possibilities."
Huang Yihong of Shenkeda stated, the number of industry consolidation cases in the semiconductor equipment sector has increased this year, which is an inevitable trend in the industry. Integration helps companies achieve optimal resource allocation, technological complementarity, and enhances industry competitiveness, promoting the transformation of domestic semiconductor equipment from 'single-point technology breakthroughs' to 'systematic capability building,' accelerating the scale-up of the industry chain, and better addressing international competition and technological blockades.
It is understood that in 2024, Shenkeda acquired minority stakes in its subsidiaries. Huang Yihong stated that the company will continue to pay attention to policy dynamics, actively respond to national policy guidance, and consider whether to conduct external M&A based on business development needs.Currently, the company is strengthening its platform-based management structure. By integrating the technology center and sales platform, it aims to achieve resource integration and rapid response across different business segments, thereby enhancing the system's competitiveness.
Huang Mingjiu, Chairman of Naike Equipment, stated that through mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and restructuring, the company can optimize resource allocation, enhance market competitiveness, achieve economies of scale, and drive enterprise transformation and upgrading. In recent years, the state has encouraged M&A and restructuring through various policy measures to optimize resource allocation, promote industrial upgrading, and drive high-quality economic development. The company closely monitors relevant market trends. If there are good targets, the company will seize the opportunity and promptly disclose relevant information.
