Due to many of the major DRAM and flash suppliers such as Qimonda, Elpida, Spansion, Powerchip and Nanya no longer being part of IC Insights' top 20 semiconductor ranking, the US-based market research company said total year-over-year sales of the top 20 semiconductor suppliers displayed an 11% increase as compared to the total worldwide semiconductor market increase of 4%.

The market researchers, which urged the industry in March not to panic about the US economy, said its May update to The McClean Report describes the big shakeup in the Q1 top 20 semiconductor supplier ranking, which includes eight US companies (including three fabless semiconductor suppliers), six Japanese, three European, two South Korean, and one Taiwanese company (IC foundry supplier TSMC).

To be included in the top 20 ranking, companies had to report at least $1 billion in Q1 sales. IC Insights noted that although the top four ranked companies remained the same, there were a number of "movers and shakers" up and down the remainder of the ranking as compared to their full-year 2007 positions.

In terms of companies that climbed the ranks, cell phone IC supplier Qualcomm saw a 29% year-over-year Q1 growth rate to jump four spots and rank as the 10th largest semiconductor supplier in 1Q08, while rival Broadcom, the third largest fabless supplier, also jumped four positions in the ranking and is now positioned as the 20th largest semiconductor supplier in the world.

Japanese consumer electronics powerhouse Panasonic (formerly Matsushita) moved up three places into the 19th position in the top 20 ranking, NEC moved up two positions from 15th to 13th, while Nvidia, the second-largest fabless supplier, registered 37% year-over-year sales growth and moved into the 18th position in the ranking, up two places from its full-year 2007 rank.

TSMC, Renesas, Sony and Infineon all moved up one place in Q1.

Companies that moved down in IC Insights ranking included DRAM-supplier Qimonda, whose nightmare continued in Q1 as the company dropped 10 positions from 19th overall in 2007 to 29th in Q1 based on a 52% sales decline year-over-year.

Also, IBM fell from the top 20 ranking even though its year-over-year sales increased 12%. IC Insights said it estimates the company is now ranked as the 22nd largest semiconductor supplier in the world, down from 18th in 2007.

NXP fell three positions in Q1 ranking to 14th from 11th place, despite a moderate 4% year-over-year sales increase, while AMD posted a solid 22% increase in year-over-year sales, but still slid two positions to 12th place.

Memory suppliers Hynix (9th place) and Micron (15th place) each fell two spots in the ranking although Micron reported a 2% increase in year-over-year sales while Hynix dropped 35%.

ST fell one position in the ranking and now occupies the 6th spot. The company's Q1 and Q1 2007 figures do not include ST's flash memory group sales, which are now part of Numonyx. As shown, the company registered a 12% year-over-year growth rate in Q1 and has a relatively positive outlook for its Q2 as well, IC Insights said.

Further, IC Insights called attention to the fact that among the top 20 semiconductor suppliers, there was a 79-point swing from the fastest growing company (TSMC at +44%) to the company showing the steepest decline (Hynix at -35%), and that 14 of the top 20 companies had double-digit 1Q08/1Q07 growth rates, including the top two companies Intel and Samsung, while only two (Toshiba and Hynix) had declines.

Currency fluctuations will play a big part in the 2008 semiconductor market figures as the strong yen and euro are converted into US dollars, the company reminded.

With the yen increasing in value 13% and the euro 14% in Q1 as compared to Q1 2007, many Japanese and European companies' results are getting a boost when converted to US dollars, and it should be kept in mind that this currency effect will also impact the worldwide semiconductor market figures when reported in US dollars this year, IC Insights concluded.

By Ann Steffora Mutschler, Senior Editor - Electronic News