Toshiba leads sluggish Q1 NAND market
1 min read
After persevering through a devastating earthquake and two major revenue declines in 2011, Japanese electronics giant Toshiba in the first quarter of 2012 made a noteworthy comeback in the NAND flash memory market, achieving double digit growth and defying an industry wide contraction in revenue.
According to market research firm IHS iSuppli, the company posted NAND sales revenue of $1.71billion for the first quarter, up 19% from $1.43bn in the fourth quarter of 2011.That growth performance - the best among all suppliers - gave it a 34% share of the worldwide market, up from 28% in the fourth quarter.
In contrast, the overall NAND flash market was said to suffer a 1% sequential decline in revenue, with all the other suppliers experiencing sales decreases, most by double digit percentages.
"Toshiba's improved performance in the first quarter came after a troubling 2011," said Dee Nguyen, memory analyst at IHS. "Last year the company's nand market share saw two major declines. The first drop came during the second quarter because of disrupted production stemming from the Japan earthquake tsunami disaster in March. The second decline arrived during the fourth quarter when uncertain market conditions necessitated a carryover of inventory into the first quarter this year. Toshiba's strong results show that the company has regained its footing and has put a tumultuous year behind it."
According to IHS, the inventory carryover from the fourth quarter allowed Toshiba to outship its competitors in the first quarter. With its strong performance, the company was able to hold on to the NAND market's number two rank, second to Samsung Electronics of South Korea.
