LONDON — The three-month moving average of worldwide sales of semiconductors declined by 9.8 percent in November to $20.84 billion compared to sales of $23.12 billion in November 2007, averaged on the same basis, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), which referenced World Semiconductor Trade Statistics as its source.

November sales were 7.2 percent lower than the $22.47 billion in October 2008 and sales for the first 11 months of 2008 were $232.7 billion, an increase of 0.2 percent from the first 11 months of 2007 when sales were $232.2 billion. Excluding memory products, year-to-date industry sales increased 5.6 percent.

"The worldwide economic crisis is having an impact on demand for semiconductors, but to a lesser degree than some other major industry sectors." said SIA president George Scalise, in a statement. "Not all segments of the industry are being affected equally by the downturn. The memory market which has been under severe price pressure throughout the year has seen sales decline significantly while many other product sectors have year-to-date sales above 2007 levels." Scalise added.

The SIA Global Sales Report is a three-month moving average of sales activity. The moving average is a mathematical smoothing technique that mitigates variations due to differences in companies' financial calendars.

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