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[Reuters]-From delayed delivery of cars to shortages of home appliances and even high-priced smartphones, related companies and consumers around the world are facing an unprecedented shortage of semiconductors.
The causes of the shortage are manifold. For example, an automobile manufacturer closed its factory during the new corona pandemic last year. However, it now competes with a wide range of consumer electronics industries for the supply of semiconductors.
Consumers also had to buy laptops and game consoles for home use due to the corona virus, increasing inventory shortages. When it comes to cars, the supply of cars has become even more limited as consumers have been more motivated to buy than expected by automaker executives as of last spring.
Various sanctions on Chinese tech companies have also exacerbated the semiconductor shortage crisis. Initially, the semiconductor shortage occurred exclusively in the automotive industry, but has now spread to a wide range of home appliances such as smartphones, refrigerators, and microwave ovens.
Manufacturing companies using semiconductors are rushing to increase their inventories. On the other hand, the shortage of semiconductors has put pressure on production capacity, driving up the prices of even the cheapest parts and pushing up the prices of the final product.
Automobiles are increasingly dependent on semiconductors. It has a wide range of applications, from engine control computers to improve fuel efficiency to driving support functions such as emergency braking.
The semiconductor shortage crisis has forced many automakers to curb production of lower-margin cars. Large companies such as General Motors (GM) and Ford Motor Co. in the United States have decided to cut production. Volkswagen (VW), SUBARU (Subaru), Toyota Motor and Nissan Motor of Germany have already taken similar steps.
According to IHS Markit, the automotive semiconductor shortage could affect the production of nearly 1.3 million small cars worldwide in the first quarter of this year. The Renesas Electronics factory fire made the situation even worse. The Renesas semiconductor “microcomputer” for automobiles has a global market share of around 30%.
There is also the effect of the great cold wave that hit Texas, the US Samsung Electronics in South Korea, NXP Semiconductors in the Netherlands and Infineon in Germany were temporarily shut down due to this effect. This suspension of operations is believed to have also contributed to the semiconductor shortage.
The root of the semiconductor shortage is the lack of investment in the 8-inch silicon wafer factory, which is mostly owned by Asians. As a result, when demand for mobile phones and laptops compatible with fifth generation (5G) mobile communications systems expanded faster than expected, companies struggled to increase production of such silicon wafers.
Meanwhile, Qualcomm, which supplies semiconductors to Samsung smartphones, is desperate to keep meeting demand. Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., a major supplier to Apple Inc., also warned that semiconductor shortages will affect its customer supply network.
Most of the semiconductor manufacturing is currently done in Asia. Major contract manufacturers such as Taiwan Stacked Cable Manufacturing (TSMC) and Samsung are responsible for the production of hundreds of semiconductor companies.
American semiconductor companies account for 47% of the world’s semiconductors in terms of sales, but only 12% of the world’s semiconductors are made in the United States.
It costs tens of billions of dollars to build a silicon wafer factory. Even if production capacity is expanded, it will take up to a year to test and operate complex manufacturing equipment and ensure quality.
US President Joe Biden is asking Congress to allocate a $ 37 billion budget to boost his semiconductor manufacturing industry. There are currently four planned semiconductor factories in the United States. There are two Intel locations in the US and one TSMC location in Arizona. There is a Samsung in Texas. ..
China is also subsidizing its semiconductor industry in an effort to eliminate its dependence on Western countries.
