TECHNOLOGY - Oct. 28, 1993

Big Gains Predicted for Semiconductor Market: Pushed by burgeoning demand for personal computers and communications devices, the worldwide semiconductor market is expected to reach $77.3 billion in 1993 and more than $100 billion in 1996, an industry group predicted. The 1993 market is up 29% from 1992, according to the Semiconductor Industry Assn. The North American market for semiconductors--diodes, transistors and integrated circuits etched on silicon that help run PCs as well as everything from telephones to car-braking systems--will reach $24.8 billion this year, a 34.5% increase from 1992, the SIA said in its annual forecast. For the first time since 1985, the North American market is expected to surpass that of Japan, the group said.