Gartner: "Samsung Reclaims Global Semiconductor Sales No.1 in 3 Years, Surpassing Intel Last Year"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Another analysis has emerged showing that Samsung Electronics surpassed Intel to achieve the world's number one semiconductor sales last year. Global semiconductor sales last year were recorded to have exceeded $500 billion for the first time ever.

On the 20th, market research firm Gartner announced that Samsung Electronics was tentatively ranked first in global semiconductor sales last year, overtaking the U.S. company Intel for the first time since 2018. Samsung Electronics' semiconductor sales last year increased by 31.6% from the previous year to $75.95 billion, surpassing Intel's $73.1 billion to claim the top spot. Market share was 13.0% for Samsung Electronics and 12.5% for Intel.

Regarding Samsung Electronics reclaiming the global semiconductor sales crown after three years, Gartner analyzed that "market demand surged sharply due to remote work and learning needs, significantly boosting memory sales." Memory semiconductor sales accounted for 33.8% of the total semiconductor sales growth last year.

On the other hand, Intel's growth last year was only 0.5% compared to the previous year, marking the lowest growth rate among the top 25 semiconductor companies.

SK Hynix's sales last year reached $36.326 billion, up 40.5% from the previous year, ranking third in global semiconductor sales after Samsung Electronics and Intel. Its market share was recorded at 6.2%. Following were Micron in fourth place ($28.449 billion) and Qualcomm in fifth ($26.856 billion).

Gartner reported that global semiconductor sales exceeded $500 billion for the first time ever last year. Total global semiconductor sales last year reached $583.5 billion, a 25.1% increase from the previous year. Andrew Norwood, Vice President of Research at Gartner, analyzed, "As the global economy rebounded last year, semiconductor supply chains, especially in the automotive industry, experienced shortages," adding, "Strong demand and rising logistics and raw material prices led to an increase in the average selling price of semiconductors, contributing to overall sales growth."

Gartner's analysis aligns with earlier reports from other market research firms such as IC Insights and Omdia. Both IC Insights and Omdia reported at the end of last year and recently that Samsung Electronics overtook Intel to become number one in semiconductor sales for the first time in three years.