SAN JOSE, CA – Worldwide sales of semiconductors in April were $21.2 billion, up 5.9% year-over-year, the Semiconductor Industry Association reported today.

Year-to-date sales of $82.9 billion are 4.3% higher than the first four months of 2007.

“Despite steep increases in energy costs that have diminished the disposable income of consumers, worldwide sales of semiconductors grew by a healthy 5.9% compared to April 2007,” said SIA president George Scalise. “Price attrition in memory products continued to dampen overall revenue growth for the industry. Excluding sales of memory devices, April semiconductor sales grew by more than 12% year-on-year. Unit sales of both DRAMs and NAND flash products were up significantly year-on-year, but price attrition resulted in a 14% decline in total sales of memory products.

“Unit sales of personal computers and handsets – the two largest demand drivers for semiconductors – continue to be in line with forecasts,” Scalise continued. “Unit sales of PCs are projected to grow by around 10% this year, while handset unit sales are forecasted to grow in the 12% range. Growth in these two important end-markets is increasingly driven by sales outside the United States.”

SIA noted the Consumer Electronics Association reports consumer spending on electronic products as a percentage of all purchases of durable goods is continuing to rise from less than 10% in the 1980s to around 15% today. CEA also estimates the economic stimulus package in the U.S. will generate $5 billion in additional consumer electronic purchases; these effects have not yet been seen in the data.