According to the latest data released by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), global semiconductor sales in April 2025 reached $57 billion, up 2.5% month-on-month from $55.6 billion in March and up 22.7% year-on-year, much higher than $46.4 billion in April 2024. This data is based on a three-month moving average provided by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics Organization (WSTS), reflecting a steady recovery trend in the global market.
John Neuffer, President and CEO of SIA, said, "April was the first month-on-month increase in global semiconductor sales since 2025, while the overall market continued to show year-over-year expansion, driven by strong demand in the Americas and Asia-Pacific. He also pointed out that the analysis believes that the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology is the main driver driving the growth of the semiconductor market. With the widespread application of AI in various fields, the demand for high-performance chips continues to surge. At the same time, the continuous expansion and upgrading of cloud infrastructure, as well as the trend of intelligent and high-end consumer electronics, also provide a strong growth momentum for the semiconductor market.
In terms of sales by region, the most significant year-on-year growth in April 2025 was in the Americas, reaching 44.4%; The rest of Asia Pacific grew by 23.1%; The Chinese market rose 14.4%; 4.3% in Japan; The European market was basically flat, growing by only 0.1%. On a month-on-month basis, China and the rest of Asia Pacific grew by 5.5% and 5.3%, respectively, while Europe also rose slightly (0.5%). However, the Japanese and American markets edged down by 0.6% and 1.1%, respectively.
In addition, according to the latest 2025 global semiconductor market forecast report released by WSTS, the total global semiconductor sales in 2025 are expected to increase by 11.2% year-on-year to reach $700.9 billion; By 2026, this figure is expected to rise further to $760.7 billion. WSTS's forecasts are based on detailed data from the world's major semiconductor companies, providing a powerful forward-looking reference for industry trends.
Figure: Global semiconductor sales rose 2.5% month-on-month in April
Overall, with the continuous release of technology demand in many fields, the global semiconductor industry is steadily moving towards a new round of growth cycle, and 2025 is expected to be an important turning point and breakthrough year for the industry.
In terms of application fields, subdivisions such as automotive electronics and AI chips will maintain strong growth. The global automotive semiconductor market is expected to reach $78 billion by 2025, up 19% year-over-year. The trend of intelligent and electrification of automobiles has led to a significant increase in the demand for on-board computing chips, sensor chips, and power semiconductors.
In the future, the semiconductor market is expected to usher in a new peak of development led by several key trends. With the continuous development and popularization of technologies such as 5G, Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence, the demand for downstream applications will continue to grow, driving the semiconductor market to continue to expand. The global semiconductor market size is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 8.3% through 2026. From the perspective of technological innovation, as Moore's Law gradually approaches the physical limit, the semiconductor industry is actively exploring new technology paths. For example, chiplet technology is expected to be more widely used in the coming years by heterogeneously integrating chip modules with different functions, which can achieve higher integration and performance while reducing production costs. New semiconductor materials such as two-dimensional materials and topological insulators have also become research hotspots, and their unique physical properties may bring new performance breakthroughs to semiconductor devices and open up new tracks for the development of the industry. In terms of advanced packaging technology, it will continue to develop in the direction of higher integration, smaller size and better performance, such as the advancement of heterogeneous integration and three-dimensional packaging technology, which will promote the doubling of memory chip performance every two years, and the advanced packaging market size is expected to exceed $80 billion by 2026.
