Short-term sluggishness in semiconductor demand as smartphone penetration rises
First written in FY2017-Q1. 10 of 24 entries say "Materialised", first in FY2019-Q2. Latest entry: FY2026.
Towa moved to the "Worse" side of this theme in 2019, 1 year before the typical company in this theme (2020).
The whole theme swung hardest in 2023: 46 of 71 companies on the "Worse" side.
9 other companies' latest entry also says "Restated".
- FY2026RestatedAnnual report
「The semiconductor manufacturing equipment business operated by the group is significantly affected by capital investment by semiconductor manufacturers, which is determined by demand for end products such as smartphones, servers and automobiles, economic trends in their markets of consumption, and fluctuations in semiconductor prices resulting from supply-demand conditions.」
It continues to describe the risk that demand for end products such as smartphones, economic conditions, and semiconductor supply-demand conditions and price fluctuations affect the business through capital investment. - FY2026-H1MaterialisedAnnual report
「Some areas remain stagnant, including automotive demand, which has been weak due to slower growth in the EV market, and the delayed recovery of legacy semiconductors.」
In addition to weak demand for consumer products such as smartphones, it identifies weak automotive demand due to slower growth in the EV market and the delayed recovery of legacy semiconductors as factors behind the stagnation in the semiconductor market during the period. - FY2025RestatedAnnual report
「Investment stagnated for PCs, smartphones and other consumer products and for industrial equipment due to weak end demand and prolonged inventory adjustments.」
The company maintains its view that weak demand and investment in consumer products and prolonged inventory adjustments will continue. - FY2025-H1RestatedAnnual report
「Investment in consumer products has not yet achieved a full-fledged recovery, although capacity utilization has gradually improved.」
The company maintains its view that demand and investment related to consumer products such as PCs and smartphones have not yet achieved a full-fledged recovery, although capacity utilization has improved. - FY2024-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「The slump in demand for related semiconductors has persisted due to declining demand for consumer products such as PCs and smartphones.」
The company maintains its view that weak demand for consumer products such as PCs and smartphones has continued. - FY2024-Q2MaterialisedAnnual report
「In the semiconductor industry, weak demand for end products such as PCs and smartphones continued for an extended period, although」
Weak demand for end products such as PCs and smartphones is described as a prolonged market condition, rather than a temporary concern. - FY2024-Q1MaterialisedAnnual report
「In the semiconductor industry, inventory adjustments continued, particularly for memory semiconductors, due to weak demand for end products such as PCs and smartphones, while」
Weak demand for end products such as PCs and smartphones and inventory adjustments for memory semiconductors continued as market conditions during the quarter, rather than as concerns. - FY2023-Q2MaterialisedAnnual report
「While capital investment showed signs of slowing as demand for PCs, smartphones and other products declined due to weaker personal consumption,」
The decline in demand for PCs and smartphones is described as market conditions during the quarter, rather than a concern, and is linked to signs of slowing capital investment. - FY2023-Q1MaterialisedAnnual report
「Demand for PCs and smartphones stagnated due to a decline in demand for end products, although」
Stagnant semiconductor demand for PCs and smartphones is described as market conditions during the quarter, rather than a concern. - FY2022-Q3MitigatedAnnual report
「In the semiconductor industry, strong demand continued across a wide range of fields, including products related to high-speed communications standards such as 5G for smartphones, PCs, data centers and consumer electronics.」
It states that strong semiconductor demand continued for 5G-related products, including smartphones, and that the risk of sluggish smartphone demand had not materialized during the period. - FY2021-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「Regarding the impact of the spread of COVID-19 on business performance, there were no major delays in production, shipping arrangements or equipment installation, and no significant cost increases associated with these measures. However, customers have adopted a wait-and-see stance toward capital investment amid uncertainty over future demand for end products such as smartphones, automobiles and industrial equipment due to concerns over a prolonged economic slowdown, requiring close attention to developments going forward.」
It describes uncertainty over future demand for end products, including automobiles and industrial equipment, in addition to the slowdown and uncertainty in smartphone demand, as well as customers' wait-and-see stance toward capital investment. - FY2020-Q2MaterialisedAnnual report
「In the laser processing equipment business, demand for electronic components remained weak due to slowing smartphone demand and sluggish global automobile sales. In addition, manufacturers of electronic components became more cautious in their investment decisions amid uncertainty over the outlook resulting from the US-China trade war, leading to lower demand for capital investment. As a result, revenue was ¥948 million and the operating loss was ¥7 million.」
As slowing smartphone demand continued, sluggish global automobile sales and greater caution among electronic component manufacturers in making investment decisions also contributed, resulting in an operating loss in the laser processing equipment business. - FY2020-Q1MaterialisedAnnual report
「In the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business, earnings were significantly affected by customers' investment decisions as a result of falling memory prices, slowing smartphone demand and uncertainty over the outlook due to the US-China trade war, while the recovery in investment sentiment took longer than expected. As a result, revenue was ¥3,805 million, down ¥3,443 million, or 47.5%, year on year.」
The slowdown in smartphone demand has appeared in actual results as a 47.5% decline in revenue in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business, through its impact on customers' investment decisions and the delayed recovery in investment sentiment. - FY2019MaterialisedAnnual report
「However, as smartphone demand declined due to lengthening replacement cycles and major IT companies slowed their data center investments, aggressive capital investment through last year fell sharply from the second half onward, resulting in」
The decline in demand resulting from longer smartphone replacement cycles became an actual performance factor, appearing as a sharp decline in capital investment in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business. - FY2019-Q3MaterialisedAnnual report
「The smartphone market showed signs of slowing as replacement cycles lengthened, with major smartphone manufacturers, among others, revising their earnings forecasts downward.」
Concerns over slowing smartphone demand have materialized as signs of a market slowdown and downward earnings revisions by major manufacturers. - FY2019-Q2MaterialisedAnnual report
「Operating income was ¥811 million, down ¥1,601 million, or 66.4%, year on year, due to the decline in the sales mix of high-value-added products as smartphone demand slowed, mold sales in China at strategic prices, and an increase in personnel accompanying the expansion of the business.」
It describes the fact that slowing smartphone demand led to a lower product mix and a decline in operating income in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment business. - FY2019-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「Semiconductor applications continue to expand with the full-scale adoption of AI and IoT (the Internet of Things) and the growth of high-capacity, high-speed communications ahead of the arrival of the fifth-generation mobile communications system (5G). However, concerns remain over slowing smartphone demand and a temporary slowdown caused by component shortages, requiring close attention to future market trends.」
The slowdown in smartphone demand is explicitly cited again, along with concerns over a temporary slowdown caused by component shortages. It is described as a concern, not an actual slowdown. - FY2018MitigatedAnnual report
「Demand for DRAM and NAND flash memory has remained strong due to increased memory capacity per smartphone and the expansion of data center capacity. In addition, the growth of the cryptocurrency market has boosted demand for high-performance semiconductors capable of rapidly processing vast amounts of computation, and further demand growth is expected.」
Rather than sluggish short-term demand due to rising smartphone penetration, it describes strong demand driven by memory capacity per device, data centers and high-performance semiconductors for cryptocurrency applications. - FY2018-Q3MitigatedAnnual report
「The semiconductor market expanded significantly, led by DRAM and NAND flash memory, due to growing demand for 3D memory for data processing accompanying higher smartphone functionality and the spread of IoT, increased server memory capacity to handle the sharp rise in data volumes accompanying the development of cloud services and AI, and the growing number of semiconductor devices installed in vehicles as autonomous driving advances.」
It states that the market expanded significantly against a backdrop of higher smartphone functionality, memory, cloud services, AI and autonomous driving, rather than sluggish short-term demand due to rising smartphone penetration. - FY2018-Q2MitigatedAnnual report
「Demand for DRAM and NAND flash memory, mainly for servers and smartphones, has remained strong.」
Rather than sluggish short-term demand resulting from smartphone adoption, it states that memory demand for servers and smartphones has remained strong. - FY2018-Q1MitigatedAnnual report
「Semiconductor demand has remained firm recently, driven by increased demand for high-performance server memory for data centers, the start of production of new smartphones, and the wider use of automotive electronics as vehicles are equipped with advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS).」
It states that semiconductor demand remains firm due to demand from data centers, new smartphones and vehicles equipped with ADAS, rather than sluggish short-term demand resulting from smartphone adoption. - FY2017-Q3Further specification of demand driversAnnual report
「The drivers of semiconductor demand are diverse. New demand has emerged for advanced packages requiring combinations of various devices, driven by higher smartphone functionality, increased memory capacity, the expansion of data centers for big-data processing accompanying the spread of IoT (the Internet of Things), and the rise of the automotive-related business as vehicles become increasingly electronic and autonomous.」
Rather than sluggish short-term demand due to rising smartphone penetration, it more specifically identifies demand for advanced packages arising from higher functionality, increased memory capacity, data centers, 3D memory and autonomous driving as demand drivers. - FY2017-Q2ReframedAnnual report
「The drivers of semiconductor demand are diverse. In addition to the expansion of smartphone adoption, demand for 3D memory is growing as data centers expand to process big data accompanying the spread of IoT (the Internet of Things), while the automotive-related business is growing as vehicles become increasingly electronic and autonomous. As a result, further demand growth is expected even for advanced packages requiring combinations of various devices.」
The previous description of sluggish short-term demand due to rising smartphone penetration is absent from this filing, while the expansion of smartphone adoption is positioned as a driver of demand. - FY2017-Q1First statedAnnual report
「With smartphone penetration, the main driver of demand, rising globally, short-term semiconductor demand has remained sluggish, although」
It states that short-term semiconductor demand has remained sluggish against a backdrop of rising global smartphone penetration.