Global Fab Equipment Spending Poised to Log Three Straight Years of Record Highs, SEMI Reports USA - English Share this article Share this article MILPITAS, Calif., March 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Fueled by surging pandemic-inspired demand for electronics devices, the global semiconductor industry is on track to register a rare three consecutive years of record highs in fab equipment spending with a 16% increase in 2020 followed by forecast gains of 15.5% this year and 12% in 2022, SEMI highlighted today in its quarterly World Fab Forecast report. (PRNewsfoto/SEMI) Fabs worldwide will add about $10 billion worth of equipment in each of the three years as spending climbs to top $80 billion at the end of the forecast period. Explosive demand for electronics that are the backbone of communications, computing, healthcare and online services – sectors that mounted robust responses to the COVID-19 outbreak as the world rallied to curb the coronavirus's spread – account for much of the spending.