TrendForce Consulting: The combined revenue of the top ten wafer foundries in 4Q24 increased by nearly 10% from the previous quarter, reaching a new record high.

According to the latest survey by TrendForce, the global wafer foundry industry will show a polarization trend in the fourth quarter of 2024. Advanced processes will benefit from the growth in emerging applications such as AI servers, as well as the continued stockpiling of new flagship smartphone APs and PC platforms, driving an increase in high-priced wafer shipments. This growth offsets the impact of a slowing demand for mature processes, with the combined revenue of the top ten wafer foundries increasing by nearly 10% to reach $38.48 billion, setting a new record. TrendForce also stated that the international situation is starting to impact the wafer foundry industry. For example, the demand for TVs, PCs/laptops shipping early to the US, and the additional rush orders for production in the fourth quarter of 2024, extending into the first quarter of 2025. Additionally, with China launching a trade-in subsidy policy in the second half of last year, upstream customers are accelerating shipments and replenishing inventories ahead of time. The market demand for TSMC's AI-related chips and advanced packaging remains strong. Despite the traditional off-season in the first quarter, wafer foundry revenue is only expected to decline slightly. In terms of major wafer foundry companies in the fourth quarter of 2024: - TSMC: Revenue increased to $26.85 billion with a market share of 67%. - Samsung: Revenue slightly decreased by 1.4% to $3.26 billion with a market share of 8.1%. - SMIC: Revenue increased by 1.7% to $2.2 billion with a market share of 5.5%. - UMC: Revenue decreased by 0.3% to $1.87 billion, ranking fourth. - GlobalFoundries: Revenue grew by 5.2% to $1.83 billion. - HuaHong Group: Revenue increased by 6.1% to $1.04 billion with a market share of 2.6%. - Tower: Revenue increased by 4.5% to $387 million with a market share of 1%. - VIS: Revenue decreased by 2.3% to $357 million. - Nexchip: Revenue increased by 3.7% to $344 million, moving up to the ninth spot. - PSMC: Revenue decreased, falling to the tenth spot. Overall, the wafer foundry industry is experiencing a mix of growth and challenges in the fourth quarter of 2024.