Paris, February 25, 2019 – 2018 ended on a positive note for the French semiconductor market, with the strongest quarterly growth recorded since the fourth quarter of 2016.

According to ACSIEL, in Q4 2018 the total market (including all direct sales from semiconductor manufacturers to OEMs and their distributors) grew by 7.6% quarter-on-quarter, to €484m, 0.4% above Q4 2017. Sequential growth in POS sales via distribution was +3.6%, while direct sales to OEM integrators jumped +9.6%.

In direct sales, this growth was driven by the Consumer/Computer, Automotive and Industrial segments. With growth of 13.0%, the industrial market reached a record level in value terms in the fourth quarter. In terms of product families, the main contribution to growth came from MOS-Micros (microprocessors and microcontrollers) with +13.2%, since they account for 40% of sales to OEMs. With a much smaller relative weighting (6%), the Optoelectronics and Discrete families also enjoyed good growth (+21.2% and +13.1% respectively). Sales of Analog circuits, which account for 15% of sales to OEMs, remained almost stable (+1.5%).

In 2018, growth driven by Retail and Industrial markets

Over 2018 as a whole, the French market grew by +0.9% in euros, to €1,887m, and by +5.5% in dollars (to $2,230m). Retail sales confirmed their momentum with a +7.2% increase, after +8.9% in 2017, gaining 5 market share points in 2 years, to represent a third of the total market in 2018. In contrast, the Consumer/Computer segment penalized market growth significantly, losing a third of its value in 2018.

Each year, ACSIEL reallocates sales from distributors to end-customers within the various segments, to give an overall view of the French semiconductor market by major application segment. This year, the Industrial segment has the highest market share at 37%, just ahead of Automotive at 36%. Far behind are Smart Cards (10%) and the Aerospace and Military segment (9%), most of which is sold directly, rather than through distributors.

The Industrial segment was also the main contributor to total market growth in absolute terms in 2018, with an increase of +4.7%. This segment benefited in particular from demand linked to connected objects (“IoT”) and healthcare, demand whose momentum was also reflected in the growth of Sensors & Actuators products (+6.5%).

The Automotive segment reported moderate growth of +1.5%, as in 2017. Growth prospects for automotive electronics nevertheless remain very favorable in the short and medium term, with the proliferation of electronic modules linked to high-growth applications such as driver assistance functions, infotainment, the connected vehicle, electric cars and plug-in hybrids, and then over the next decade the autonomous car.

The Military and Space Aeronautics segment, which is an important specificity of the French market thanks to a very strong industrial base, resumed its progression in 2018 and its future remains well oriented.