Critical shortages of components might raise prices
CRITICAL SHORTAGES of key electronic components are leading to price rises and supply chain delays.
The bleak outlook painted by industry watchers at Isuppli show that the lead times for components such as metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), rectifiers and other electronic gubbins have increased steadily over the past year. The components are found on motherboards, power supplies and just about every component inside a computer.
With such a poor state of affairs, Isuppli is saying that manufacturers are unable to meet surges in demand as components such as tantalum capacitors and low-power MOSFETs are on “allocation status”.
According to Isuppli, the typical lead time for components is 12 weeks but the supply situation is so bad that lead times for many components have reached 20 weeks. “When lead times enter the 20 week range, they indicate a major schism between component supply and demand,” according to Rick Pierson, senior analyst for semiconductors and component price tracking at Isuppli.
The bad news is that parts shortages are likely to persist until the end of 2010 with lead times increasing. According to Isuppli, problems might extend to NAND memory, meaning that flash memory devices such as solid state drives (SSDs) and compact flash cards might also see increased prices. µ
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