reported that Samsung is currently negotiating with customers and is expected to increase wafer foundry fees by 20% in 2022 to cope with rising material and logistics costs.
In this regard, sources pointed out that the price of chips based on the protocol may increase by about 15% to 20%, and the extent of the price increase depends on the design complexity of the chip. Among them, chips produced on mature processes will face greater price increases. The new prices are expected to be implemented from the second half of 2022. Samsung has completed negotiations with some customers, but is still in discussions with other customers who have not completed price negotiations.
In fact, Samsung’s decision to change its stable pricing strategy relative to 2021 is mainly due to the current poor global economic conditions in the semiconductor industry amid the global chip shortage, coupled with the impact of Ukraine and Russia, and the continued Due to uncertain factors such as epidemic prevention and control, inflation and interest rate increases, various foundries are actively adjusting foundry prices to further promote corporate performance to maintain growth.
However, after TSMC and Samsung successively decided to carry out a new round of price increases, it is expected that smartphone, automobile, and game console manufacturers will pass on part of the price increase to consumers, causing consumers to have to pay more purchasing costs. .
The report emphasized that TSMC and Samsung currently account for two-thirds of the world's wafer foundry market share. However, recently, from chemicals, natural gas , to semiconductor silicon wafers to equipment and other materials, wafer foundry market share has increased. Industrial and commercial manufacturing costs have increased by an average of about 20% to 30% in all aspects, so the price of wafer foundry has to be further increased.
Samsung currently refuses to comment on this news.
It is worth noting that news shows that another major foundry, UMC , plans to conduct a new round of price increases in the second quarter of 2022, with a price increase of approximately 4%. Prior to this, UMC has been raising its foundry quotations almost every quarter or two since 2021.
At the press conference at the end of April, UMC General Manager Wang Shi said that UMC’s capacity utilization rate reached 100% in the first quarter of 2022, and is expected to continue to maintain 100% in the second quarter, with overall production capacity increasing quarterly. About 4.5%. The average selling price of products increased by 3% to 4%, and the gross profit margin reached 45%.
UMC has previously cooperated with a number of chip customers to further expand the P5 plant of UMC Nanke Fab 12A. It will enter mass production in the second quarter. However, this part of the new production capacity has already been booked by chip customers who have previously participated in the expansion cooperation. Empty.
Compared with the successive price increases of TSMC, Samsung, and UMC, the domestic wafer foundry leader SMIC is more cautious about price increases.
SMIC CEO Zhao Haijun said that currently "prices are rising in all aspects, and raw materials with large price increases even exceed 30%." Taken together, the price increases of these materials will eat away at least 10% of SMIC's sales. Gross profit margin and high costs will erode performance especially in 2022, because the materials used in 2021 will still be the same batch before the price increase.
However, when it comes to price increases, "we are not in exactly the same situation as our peers." Zhao Haijun said that SMIC is also negotiating with customers to adjust prices, but has not announced a unified price increase. SMIC's principle is still to negotiate friendly with customers and then consider long-term strategic cooperation. Because the company's production capacity is growing rapidly, we must work with customers with development potential for a long time. Customers must also make profits and have enough funds to invest in new products and new research and development. Only in this way can we achieve long-term win-win results, rather than just looking at who wins in the short term. to more.
Editor: Xinzhixun-Linzi
