WASHINGTON – The global semiconductor industry posted sales of $412.2 billion in 2017, the industry’s highest-ever annual sales, up 21.6% year-over-year, says the Semiconductor Industry Association.

Global sales for the month of December reached a record high $38 billion, an increase of 22.5% compared to the same month in 2016, and up 0.8% sequentially. Fourth-quarter sales of $114 billion were 22.5% higher than the total from the fourth quarter of 2016 and 5.7% more than the third quarter of 2017. Global fourth quarter sales were the industry’s highest-ever quarterly sales, says SIA.

All monthly sales numbers are compiled by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization and represent a three-month moving average.

“As semiconductors have become more heavily embedded in an ever-increasing number of products – from cars to coffee makers – and nascent technologies like artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and the Internet of Things have emerged, global demand for semiconductors has increased, leading to landmark sales in 2017 and a bright outlook for the long term,” said John Neuffer, SIA president and CEO. “The global market experienced across-the-board growth in 2017, with double-digit sales increases in every regional market and nearly all major product categories. We expect the market to grow more modestly in 2018.”

In 2017, memory was the largest semiconductor category by sales, with $124 billion, and the fastest growing, with sales increasing 61.5%. Within the memory category, sales of DRAM products increased 76.8% and sales of NAND flash products increased 47.5%. Logic ($102.2 billion) and micro-ICs ($63.9 billion) – a category that includes microprocessors – rounded out the top three product categories in terms of total sales. Other fast-growing product categories in 2017 included rectifiers (18.3%), diodes (16.4%), and sensors and actuators (16.2%). Even without sales of memory products, sales of all other products combined increased by nearly 10% in 2017.

Annual sales increased substantially across all regions: the Americas (35%), China (22.2%), Europe (17.1%), Asia Pacific/All Other (16.4%), and Japan (13.3%). The Americas market also led the way in growth for the month of December, with sales up 41.4% year-over-year and 2.1% sequentially. Next were Europe (20.2%), China (18.1%), Asia Pacific/All Other (17.4%), and Japan (14%).

“A strong semiconductor industry is foundational to America’s economic strength, national security, and global technology leadership,” said Neuffer. “We urge Congress and the Trump Administration to enact polices in 2018 that promote US innovation and allow American businesses to compete on a more level playing field with our counterparts overseas. We look forward to working with policymakers in the year ahead to further strengthen the semiconductor industry, the broader tech sector, and our economy.”