SILICON WAFER SHIPMENTS EXPERIENCE GROWTH FOR THE FOURTH YEAR IN A ROW, REVENUES INCREASE BY 8 PERCENT

Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments increased by 6% in 2005 when compared to 2004 area shipments. Revenues also grew by 8 percent in 2005 compared to 2004.

Silicon wafer area shipments in 2005 totaled 6,645 million square inches (MSI), up from the 6,262 million square inches shipped during 2004. Revenues grew to $7.9 billion from $7.3 billion posted in 2004. Fourth quarter silicon area shipments increased 4 percent from the prior quarter and were 23 percent above the fourth quarter 2004 shipments.

2005 was a record year for wafer shipments and revenues, with strong growth observed throughout the second half of the year . Heading into 2006, wafer suppliers face many challenges between tight raw material supply, rising energy costs and potential supply constraints; a situation heightened by the recent demand of 200 mm wafers exceeding current capacity.

Annual Silicon Industry Trends

worldwide Silicon Data	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005
Area Shipments (MSI)	5,551	3,940	4,681	5,149	6,262	6,645
Revenues ($B)	7.5	5.2	5.5	5.8	7.3	7.9

Quarterly Silicon Area Shipment Trends Silicon Shipments - Millions of Square Inches

	Q4 2004	Q3 2005	Q4 2005
Polished	1,114	1,304	1,358
Epitaxial	314	385	407
Nonpolished	58	59	61
TOTAL	1,486	1,748	1,826

Silicon wafers are the fundamental building material for semiconductors, which in turn, are vital components of virtually all electronics goods, including computers, telecommunications products, and consumer electronics. The highly engineered thin round disks are produced in various diameters (from one inch to 12 inches) and serve as the substrate material on which most semiconductor devices or chips are fabricated.

All data cited in this release is inclusive of polished silicon wafers, including virgin test wafers, epitaxial silicon wafers, and non-polished silicon wafers shipped by the wafer manufacturers to the end-users. Year-end analysis of the silicon wafer industry

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