After Record Year, Global Chip Sales Are Still Climbing

Last year, companies that manufacture semiconductors — the chips that go in our computers, phones and electronic gadgetry — recorded their best year ever, posting $336 billion in sales. And if the first two months of 2015 are any indicator, they’re on track to do it again.

Today the Semiconductor Industry Association, a trade group, reported that February chip sales reached $27.8 billion, amounting to an increase of nearly 7 percent over the same period a year ago.

On a regional basis, that growth was led by a 17 percent boost to customers in the Americas region. Sales in the Asia Pacific region also rose by nearly 8 percent. Sales declined in Europe year on year by 2 percent and by nearly 9 percent in Japan.

Memory chips — specifically, a type known as DRAM, which is widely used in computers, phones, tablets and servers — led sales, as did analog chips, also widely used in phones and consumer electronics.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Will you join us?

Our biggest supporters are our readers — and we’re so grateful to everyone who has made a contribution during our September campaign. We’re less than 1,000 contributions away from reaching our goal for the month, which in turn will allow us to say yes more often when our incredible journalists come to us with questions they want to answer and projects they want to pursue. Will you make a contribution before the month ends and support our policy coverage through 2024 and beyond?

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via