70 The PCB Magazine • September 2014
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The Conference Board: Strong Job
Growth Sustained
"the economy generated a gain of 209,000 jobs
in July, very close to the average of more than
200,000 per month over the past year. this means
that the trend in employment growth, which sup-
ported stellar second quarter gdp growth and
strong consumer and business confidence, is hold-
ing up for now," said gad levanon, director, mac-
roeconomic and labor market research.
Semiconductors in Health,
Fitness to See Growth
semiconductors providing wireless connectivity in
health and fitness devices are set for solid double-
digit growth in 2014 and beyond, especially as a
clutch of wireless technologies make their way into
a growing number of wearable devices, according
to a new report from ihs technology.
Chinese Vendors Lead Q2
Smartphone Shipments
the worldwide smartphone market grew 23.1%
YoY in the second quarter of 2014 (2Q14), estab-
lishing a new single quarter record of 295.3 million
shipments, according to preliminary data from the
international data Corporation (idC) worldwide
Quarterly mobile phone tracker.
3D Printers Market in India to
Witness Growth
3d printers are emerging as key growing printers in
global landscape. although the market for 3d print-
ers is in the nascent stage in india, it holds immense
growth potential in the coming years. these print-
ers are used for designing 3d models of engineering
designs, objects, prosthetics, implants, dentures,
fashion accessories, art, and decoration items.
Wireless Power Transmission Market:
$17B by 2020
wireless power transmission has gradually started
developing in the market and poses a huge po-
tential in the coming future. the market is mainly
driven by the consumer electronics segment for
the near terms, where it is mainly used for charg-
ing the portable device which includes smart
phones, tablets, and wearable electronics.
Top 20 Semiconductor Suppliers'
1H Sales up 10%
in total, the top 20 semiconductor companies'
sales increased by 10% in 1h14 as compared to
1h13, 3% higher than iC insights' current 7%
forecast for total worldwide semiconductor mar-
ket growth this year.
Industrial Electronics Chip Industry
Reports Positive Q1
industrial electronics semiconductors made
small, but important, gains in the first quarter
this year, affirming continued strength for a sec-
tor that had been battered only two years ago.
given a heartening start, industrial electronics
semiconductors could finish 2014 with $35.42
billion in annual revenue, up 9.4% from $32.39
billion last year.
u.S. unemployment Rate Drops to
6.2% in July
total nonfarm payroll employment increased by
209,000 in July, and the unemployment rate was
little changed at 6.2%, the u.s. bureau of labor
statistics reported. Job gains occurred in profes-
sional and business services, manufacturing, retail
trade, and construction.
Smartphone Shipments to Reach
322M in 3Q14
smartphone shipments are expected to reach 322
million in the third quarter of 2014, up 13% on
quarter, and see flat shipment growth on year in
the fourth quarter, while overall shipments in 2014
will reach 1.2 billion, up 29.2% on year, according
to market intelligence firm trendforce.
Demand uncertainty Pressures
Wafer Makers
pV cell manufacturers' utilization rates continued
to drop in June. "market demand will remain
weak in July before the result of the u.s.-China
anti-dumping preliminary verdict is announced.
those optimistic about future demand have
decided to continue with production; others
have decided to focus on inventory control,"
said arthur hsu, research manager at energy-
trend.
PCB007 Market
News Highlights
70 The PCB Magazine • September 2014
