Worldwide silicon wafer shipments increased 3.1% year-on-year to 3,313 million square inches (MSI) in Q3 2025 from 3,214 MSI in Q3 2024. Shipments decreased 0.4% quarter-over-quarter from 3,327 MSI in Q2 2025, with softness in recovery for epitaxial wafer slices.
Lee Chungwei, Chairman of SEMI SMG and Vice President and Chief Auditor at GlobalWafers, stated that January through September silicon shipments registered a year-on-year increase driven by 300 mm shipments for advanced logic, cloud infrastructure, and memory demand. AI contributes to wafer demand growth through investments in advanced processes.
Silicon wafers are the substrate material for most semiconductors, produced in diameters up to 300 mm.
The SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) is a sub-committee of the SEMI Electronic Materials Group (EMG), open to SEMI members manufacturing polycrystalline silicon, monocrystalline silicon, or silicon wafers (cut, polished, epitaxial). The SMG develops statistics for the silicon industry.
