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AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Semiconductor manufacturers will spend a record $400 billion on computer chip-making equipment in 2025-2027, global industry association SEMI said in estimates published on Thursday, with China, South Korea and Taiwan leading the way.
Key drivers include extra demand for excess capacity in geographical regions amid U.S.-China trade tensions, and demand for AI chips and related memory chips.
In a report, the association estimated that spending on equipment will grow by 24% to $123 billion in 2025.
Key equipment vendors include ASML of the Netherlands, Applied Materials, KLA Corp and Lam Research of the U.S., and Tokyo Electron of Japan.
“China is projected to maintain its position as the top spending region … investing over US$100 billion in the next three years driven by its national self-sufficiency policies,” SEMI said, adding that Chinese spending is declining from record levels this year.
South Korea, home to memory chip makers Samsung and SK Hynix, was seen spending $81 billion in the same period. That compares with $75 billion in Taiwan, home to top contract chipmaker TSMC — which is also building plants in the U.S., Japan and Europe.
Estimated spending in other regions was $63 billion in the Americas, $32 billion in Japan and $27 billion in Europe.
“Notably, these regions are anticipated to more than double their equipment investment in 2027 compared to 2024 due to policy incentives earmarked to alleviate concerns on the supply of crucial semiconductors,” SEMI said.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Hugh Lawson)