Against a backdrop of negative forecasts for the semiconductor industry this year, Future Horizons is predicting an outlook of -3% to +1.4%.

“The chip industry has hardly blinked – automotive and smartphones aside,” says Malcolm Penn, CEO of Future Horizons (pictured), commenting on the effect of the coronavirus.

WSTS are projecting 3.3% growth for this year taking sales from 2019’s $412 billion to $426 billion.

“The ‘industry consensus’ of -5% growth Q2 vs Q1 is, as I expected, going to prove wildly pessimistic,” added Penn.