PMIC Shortage to Continue into 2021

The current foundry model production is struggling amid increasing demand, while PMIC has run out of inventory. NB applications like power management IC suppliers have pointed out that the current supply shortage warned the situation would not let up prior before January next year.

The power management IC suppliers said the shortage has continued since Q2, and while production has resumed, the demand for laptops and related devices have grown too sharply. Industry members expect Q4 to perform better than Q3; however, should the pandemic situation improve next year, notebooks' demand will likely slow down.

At the moment, the smartphone industry is up in the air. There are firm st still staying long-term demand bolstering sales., though this is as long as the pandemic continues. In terms of smartphone applications, long-term trends indicate demand for the devices will continue to rise in the long-term. Also, demand for PMIC in smartphones will increase, as 4G smartphones typically require only one PMIC, yet 5G phones will need 3 PMIC, meaning demand for the electronics would double. However, 8-inch plants mostly produce PMIC.

At present, the industry has moved a portion of PMIC production from 8-inch plants to 12-inch plants. Production is only hampered by transferring time; firms believe stress on the production supply will lessen as soon as after Q2 next year.

Novatek Microelectronics and Egis Technology have already begun the moving process; the former recently announced that it moved a portion of products under 8-inch production to its 12-inch plant and has begun delivering orders. Egis Technology had begun plans to move a part of the production from 8-inch factories to 12-inch in the past one to two years and expects to increase the transfer next year.