AI TRENDS | Global Semiconductor Equipment Market Could Double by 2028, Report Says

CITIC Securities forecast that the global semiconductor equipment market could roughly double by 2028 compared with 2025, based on compiled data on capital spending and growth expectations across the industry. According to Jin10, the research report said its estimates were based on statistics covering capital expenditure at 31 global semiconductor manufacturers and growth expectations at 25 semiconductor equipment companies. The report forecast that global semiconductor manufacturers’ capital expenditure could reach $341.7 billion in 2028, up 103.3% from $168.1 billion in 2025. It said the sharp increase in capital spending would be directly transmitted to the equipment segment. It forecast the global wafer fab equipment (WFE) market would reach $241.4 billion in 2028, up about 108% from 2025. It also forecast the global back-end semiconductor equipment market would be about $38.3 billion in 2028, up 136.9% from $16.16 billion in 2025. By downstream demand, it ranked growth as memory (+150%) ahead of wafer foundry (+91.4%). The report said that after China’s market undergoes destocking in 2025 and 2026, it could return to strong growth in 2027.