According to a Mercury Research report, global shipments of central processing units (CPUs) have experienced their largest decline in 30 years for the second time in a row. The total number of CPUs shipped in 2021 was 525 million units, a 5.7% decrease from 2020.
According to the report, the decline is due to a combination of factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, and raw material shortages. Furthermore, the ongoing global chip shortage has hampered CPU production, resulting in fewer units available for purchase.
Intel maintains its market share of 79.6% in CPU shipments, followed by AMD at 20.3%. However, both companies saw a drop in shipments, with Intel experiencing an 8.3% drop and AMD experiencing a 1.8% drop.
CPU shipments are expected to fall 3% to 5% in the first half of 2023 before recovering in the second half, according to forecasts. However, according to the report, the decline is not indicative of a long-term trend, and the market is expected to recover in the coming years as supply chain disruptions ease and the global economy improves.
The decline had a greater impact on x86 processors than on others. Furthermore, excluding Arm processors, 374 million CPUs were shipped in 2022, a 21% decrease from 2021. CPU revenues fell 19% to $65 billion in 2022. Inventory adjustments were the primary cause, having a greater impact than declining sales.
The sources for this piece include an article in TechSpot.