In its Q3 2026 SEMI Silicon Wafer Market Monitor, SEMI predicts that global silicon wafer shipments will increase by 11.8% in 2026, due to strong AI demand, rising process material sales, as well as increases in memory demand, precautionary inventory building, and global fab capacity expansions. The positive correlation between material sales and silicon wafer demand not only reflects growth in manufacturing complexity, but also points to greater material consumption per wafer.
Silicon wafer demand will be supported by continued growth in planned equipment spending beyond 2026. The report also demonstrated a widening gap between YoY growth rates for semiconductor fab equipment spending and silicon wafer manufacturing equipment spending, suggesting that investment support for wafer demand may persist longer than initially expected.
SEMI projects continued wafer shipment growth in 2027, although it will likely be more moderate than it was in 2026. As inventory stockpiles subside, ongoing production will be important for sustaining demand.
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