In the blink of an eye, half of 2021 will pass, and the overall shortage and price increase in the IC market in the first half of the year are still continuing. So how the market will fare in the second half of the year is the most concerned issue in the industry. However, in June, many original manufacturers sent letters to increase prices, many of which were leading suppliers in various fields, which indicates that the shortage of stock prices will not stop in the short term.

Recently, the price increase has focused on the power semiconductor field, which is widely used in the automotive industry, such as MOSFET and IGBT. Since the second quarter, the price of power semiconductors has continued to increase and the delivery time has also been extended. This month, the price increases of major manufacturers such as Infineon, ON Semiconductor and Nexperia have attracted attention. These signs all indicate that the shortage of power semiconductors and the price increase will continue.

Power semiconductors are out of stock, price increases, and delivery times are extended

According to the market report updated by Future Electronics at the end of May, the prices of MOSFET and IGBT materials from original manufacturers such as Infineon, ON Semiconductor, Rohm and Nexperia generally increased in the second quarter, and the delivery period was generally extended to 26-52 week. The power semiconductor market is so tense, it is not difficult to understand that many car companies around the world stopped production in the first half of the year. In June, many original manufacturers sent letters to raise prices, and the market of power semiconductors is likely to reach a new height in the second half of the year.

Previously, industry media disclosed that due to the "Comprehensive Movement Control Order" implemented in Malaysia in June, Infineon's local factory is expected to lose 2-3 weeks of production capacity, and it is planning to increase the price of MOSFETs by 12%. Among other comprehensive IC original factories, ST has completed the price increase this month, and ON Semiconductor's price increase will also take effect in July, all involving various types of automotive chips.

In addition to the above-mentioned major international manufacturers, which are mainly engaged in diodes, MOSFETs and other products, Nexperia, which also plays an important role in the car core market, also announced a price increase this month. Immediately afterwards, BYD Semiconductor also sent a letter to adjust the price, announcing that the price of IPM and IGBT single-tube products will be increased by no less than 5% from July. Overseas power semiconductors are generally rising, and the power of domestic substitution in the electronics industry chain will inevitably increase. Whether domestic original manufacturers such as Silan Microelectronics, Jiejie Microelectronics, and Yangjie Technology have followed suit is also the focus of the market.

When it comes to the reasons for this round of IC price increases, the major changes in the global industrial chain caused by the epidemic are fundamental. Whether it is the price increase of bulk raw materials caused by the release of currency, or the sudden change of supply and demand to short supply, it can be traced back to the epidemic. Since the beginning of this year, materials such as upstream wafer foundry, packaging and testing, and even photoresist have been rising in price, and it has been determined that the price will continue to rise in the third quarter. In addition, the impact of the epidemic on Taiwan, Malaysia and other industrial centers will accelerate the market. .

As for the price increase of power devices, it was revealed as early as the second half of last year in the chip market. At that time, factories generally used production lines for logic chips with high gross profit, and the production capacity allocated to power devices such as MOSFETs decreased, and the superimposed 8 inches matured. The major problem that the process production line cannot be expanded for a long time will eventually lead to a structural shortage of high-efficiency device capacity. This year, the demand for new energy vehicles has exploded, and the epidemic has repeatedly disturbed important IC production areas, and the shortage of power semiconductors has become more serious.

The car core market is difficult, but the turning point is imminent

In the middle of 2021, the original factory still sent a letter to adjust the price, indicating that the IC market will be shrouded in shortages and price increases this year. This round of chip market starts from the car core, and when it ends, we must seek the answer from the car core. Recently, experts from the China Automobile Association have just given an interpretation in this regard, giving the market hope that the market will calm down.

According to Ye Shengji, chief engineer and deputy secretary general of the China Automobile Association, speaking at the forum recently, the shortage of car cores reached its peak in the second quarter. It is optimistic that the shortage of car cores will begin to ease in the second half of the year, and the impact is expected to be smoothed out throughout the year. Return to normal supply. After the supply of car cores is restored, IC supply in other industries will also return to normal by the end of next year.

For now, there are indeed some good signs, the most iconic of which is that Renesas's Japanese car core factory, which caught fire in March, will be fully restored by the end of this month. In addition, wafer foundries such as TSMC and UMC have also expanded investment and expanded production capacity. As a strong demand to replace consumer electronics, car cores are the key areas of investment for factories. After enough car core production capacity is released, the overall IC supply shortage will be alleviated by most, and eventually the supply and demand of various industries will return to balance.

In short, although the epidemic has seriously disrupted the synchronized growth of supply and demand in the IC market, it will not change the nature of its cyclical industry. No matter how serious the current shortage of supply is, it will eventually be gradually digested by the expansion of production by various factories, but this process must be calculated in units of years. But in the short term, the epidemic is still the primary factor determining market supply. The industry is obviously reluctant to see the epidemic hit more key areas of the IC industry in the second half of the year.