When it comes to the electronics gas and equipment markets, while the demand for gas in both in Japan and abroad is moving along firmly under bright skies, the demand for gas related equipment seems as if it were still shrouded in the mists of spring.

Fabrication of semiconductors is doing well in general in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. In China too, the Samsung Electronics plant in Xian and the SK Hynix plant in Wuxi have begun operation. With a trend toward a recovery of LCDs for a while, the demand for specialty gas is on the rise throughout East Asia.

What can be considered as hovering behind this situation is the expansion of the demand for smartphones and tablet computers. In the developed countries there a shift going on already toward a demand for replacement of smartphones to upgraded versions. The demand for tablet computers is thriving mainly in the developing countries such as China and use is spreading. Along with this, the demand for car electronics and personal computers is also moving along firmly. In Japan, manufacture of small, high quality LCDs is moving along well. In Taiwan and Korea, large LCDs had hit bottom for a while but now have started to rise up again.

Consolidation of semiconductor fabrication in Japan has not really come to end yet. Recently TowerJazz , headquartered in Israel, revealed the closing of its plant in Nishiwaki. The company, however, has acquired 3 other plants, in Uozu, Tonami, and Arai, as part of a joint venture with Panasonic. Sony has announced the acquisition of the Renaissance Electronics plant in Tsuruoka with the prospect that somehow production will keep going on. Elpida Memory has changed its name to Mircron Japan. In Japan there is a lineup of manufacturing centers operated by overseas companies such as TI, ON Semiconductor, and Micron, along with TowerJazz.

Where the demand for electronics gas related equipment is going is hard to discern. In 2013, partially as a result of the special demand brought about as a result of the fire which broke out at SK Hynix, investments were made by Samsung Electronics, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC), Toshiba, and Sony as the market recovered considerably.

At the start of the current term it was anticipated that there would be an upward trend regarding recovery. Right after Samsung Electronics announced it would restart its project, however, it revealed that there would be a postponement, apparently because trends among the end users turned out to be uncertain. Headaches are caused, however, just by virtue of the fact that the weight accounted for by semiconductor fabrication devices such as mass flow controllers and valves is high, and this winds ups controlling the demands.