Electronics Supply Chain Weekly Digest 4-3-26.
DATAPOINT OF THE WEEK: S&P reported Mar Eurozone mfg PMI increased to 51.6 from 50.8 in Feb, reaching another 4 year high and is in expansion for the second consecutive month driven by moderate upticks in both production and new orders.
Supply side inputs are also contributing to the PMI increase, with input costs inflating and lead times extending, partially driven by the war in Iran. Germany’s mfg PMI increased to 52.2, from 50.9 in Feb, the highest reading since May-22. Similar to the Eurozone, the increase is a result of a rise in production and new orders, and a lengthening in lead times.
RatingDog China mfg PMI fell to 50.8 in March from to 52.1 in Feb, but marked the fourth consecutive month of the PMI being in expansion territory. Both new orders and production rose in March, but at a slower pace compared to Feb. Furthermore, the PMI was supported by suppliers’ delivery times lengthen to greatest extent since December 2022. China’s Government mfg PMI rose to 50.4 in March, 49.0 in Feb.
In the US, S&P mfg PMI increased to 52.3 in March from 51.6 in Feb, marking the eighth straight month of being in expansion territory. Both new orders and production grew at moderate rates, however some firms noted that an uplift in demand may be tied to efforts to secure supply before potential disruptions from the war in Iran. ISM reported March US manufacturing PMI of 52.7, up from 52.4 in Feb.
Headlines:
Auto/Transportation
- Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxis suffer system failure in Wuhan, stranding passengers mid-ride, according to Bloomberg
- BYD “highly confident” of hitting 1.5M unit overseas sales target in 2026
- GM idles Factory ZERO EV plant through April 13, laying off 1.3K workers amid weakening EV demand, as reported by Reuters
- GM adds sixth production day at Flint Assembly to ramp heavy-duty truck output starting June
- Sony Honda Mobility scraps Afeela 1 EV launch and cancels second model, leaving JV’s future uncertain, according to DigiTimes
- Mercedes-Benz to invest $4B in Alabama SUV plant through 2030, part of $7B+ US commitment
- Stellantis in early talks to build Leapmotor EVs at idled Brampton plant amid Canada-China tariff shift, per Bloomberg
- Tesla’s China-made EV sales climb 23.5% Y/Y in 1Q, marking second straight quarter of growth, per Reuters
- Tesla registrations surge across key European markets in March as Model Y refresh gains traction, as reported by Reuters
- Toyota February sales fall 2.3% Y/Y as Japan automakers face supply chain disruption from Middle East conflict
- Trump’s envoy says Chinese EVs entering Canada won’t be allowed to cross into the US
- Republican senator plans legislation to extend US ban on Chinese autos to hardware, software, and partnerships, according to Reuters
Datacenter
- Flex to acquire power infrastructure specialist EP2 for $1.1B to expand US grid modernization capabilities
- Microsoft takes over 900 MW Abilene data center site originally developed for Oracle and OpenAI, according to Bloomberg
- Starcloud raises $170M at $1.1B valuation to build 88K-satellite orbital AI datacenter constellation, as reported by Reuters
- US AI data center build-out faces critical bottleneck as reliance on Chinese electrical equipment surges, Bloomberg reported
IP&E
- Molex completes largest-ever acquisition with Smiths Interconnect deal, expanding to 90+ plants across 22 countries
- Nvidia makes $2B investment in Marvell, partnering on silicon photonics to cut AI infrastructure costs
Industrial
- Neura Robotics raises $1.2B from Amazon and Qualcomm as European humanoid players push for global scale, as reported by Bloomberg
Semiconductors
- Alibaba’s Damo Academy launches 5nm RISC-V CPU targeting AI inference with claimed world-leading performance
- Apple commits $400M to US chip supply chain expansion, adding Bosch, Cirrus Logic and TDK as partners
- DG Matrix taps Infineon SiC MOSFETs for SST platform targeting AI datacenters, according to EE Times Asia
- Diodes raising prices on select product lines from April 1, citing rising input costs, according to SemiMedia
- GaN adoption in 800V AI data center power systems accelerating, with Infineon and TI leading 12-inch production push, according to DigiTimes
- Infineon targets $150 per kW power semiconductor content in AI data centers as rack power scales toward MW levels
- Intel to buy back Apollo’s 49% stake in Ireland’s Fab 34 for $14.2B as finances and AI demand improve
- Intel and AMD raise CPU prices 10-15% as AI server demand squeezes PC chip supply
- MediaTek and Qualcomm cut 4nm wafer starts ~15% Y/Y as surging memory costs cool smartphone demand, according to Commercial Times
- Nvidia’s 800V-to-12V power architecture push meets skepticism as CSPs stick with two-step conversion, says DigiTimes
- South Korea backs AI chip startup Rebellions with $166M, says DigiTimes
- onsemi designates Shanghai as Greater China HQ, targets 50% BOM localization with local manufacturing partners, as reported by Jiemian News
- Semiconductor industry capex forecast to hit $200B in 2026, up 20% Y/Y, led by memory and TSMC, according to Semiconductor Intelligence
- Solid-state transformer market projected to grow from $0.28B to $1.52B by 2035, fueled by EV and grid demand, as reported by MarketsandMarkets
- TSMC to launch 3nm chip production at Japan’s second fab in 2028 with 15K wafer monthly capacity, says Reuters
Consumer
- Global PC notebook shipments forecast revised to -14.8% Y/Y in 2026 as cost pressures and weak demand create negative feedback loop, as reported by TrendForce