Demand for servers and notebooks has been fueled by stay-at-home needs in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, which neverthess is disrupting production, logistics support, and labor supply, preventing components and chip suppliers from catching up with the pace of orders. Asustek says chips and components supply for notebooks remain tight. Asustek co-CEO Samson Hu notes that the stay-at-home economy has been significantly boosting sales for notebooks, but whether the momentum will continue in the third quarter remains questionable. Rigid PCB makers have the same worry about the notebook maket in the second half of the year.
Components and labor shortages continue to haunt server supply chain: Despite clients' strong short lead-time orders, the server supply chain is currently facing shortages of both components and labor, hindering their shipments in the second quarter, according to industry sources.
Asustek sees tight supply of notebook components: Coronavirus lockdowns in several Southeast Asian countries have disrupted supply of chips and components for notebooks and although the shortages have significantly improved recently with the countries beginning to ease some of the restrictions, related supply is still rather tight at the moment, according to Asustek Computer.
Rigid PCB makers may see weak momentum from notebooks in 2H20: Despite a ramp-up in short lead-time orders for notebook applications, most Taiwan-based rigid PCB manufacturers are expected to see their annual revenues decline in 2020 as notebook-related shipment momentum may weaken significantly in the second half of the year, according to industry sources.