Companies in the "tech products and equipment" and "automotive manufacturing" sectors account for half of the Digitimes' Asia Supply Chain 100 (ASC 100) list, but semiconductor firms well lead the list in both average profit and average market value. ASC 100 is a newly released reseach on Asia's top 100 tech firms. ASC 100 is a study based on the companies' revenues, profit and market cap that will be renewed annually.
In terms of total revenues, 26 tech products/equipment makers, 24 automotive manufacturers and nine consumer electronics suppliers all saw their respective combined revenues far outstrip those of the listed companies in other sectors. As far as total net profits and aggregate market values are concerned, automotive manufacturers stayed firmly in the second place, but semiconductors overtook consumer electronics in the rankings, even though there were only six semiconductor companies in the list.
Taiwan accounts for half of the six semiconductor companies entering the ASC 100 list, namely TSMC, MediaTek and ASE Technology Holding. The remaining three are Tokyo Electron, SK Hynix and China's Longi Holdings.
The six semiconductor companies totally differ in their business operations: TSMC engages in foundry services; MediaTek is an IC designer; ASE Technology is a leader in packaging and testing services; SK Hynix is dedicated to memory production; Tokyo Electron supplies semiconductor equipment; and Longi is solar power company.
Most semiconductor companies in Asia follow a specialized operating model based on professional division of labor, and their operating scales can hardly match those of major IDMs like Intel. The semiconductor companies in the list are all leaders in their specific fields, resulting from their deep deployments and engagements in respective fields.
In addition, the ASC 100 research can also provide insights into the characteristics of the supply chains in Asian countries. Among the seven major sectors surveyed for ASC 100, Japan led in the fields of machinery, automotive components, automotive manufacturing, and consumer electronics, accounting for over 60% of the listed companies in the respective fields, with the exception of consumer electronics at 49%. China is No. 1 only in the electronics components sector, with a corresponding share at lower than 30%. Taiwan leads Asian countries in semiconductors with a 62% share. South Korea is relatively fragmented, ranking first in none of the seven sectors. Up to 79% of Taiwan companies in the ASC 100 list are from the tech products/equipment sector, compared to 15% from semiconductors and 6% from electronics components, indicating Taiwan's manufacturing businesses are concentrated in the upstream and downstream of the ICT sector.
Rankings by revenues | ||
Rank | Industry (number of firms) | Revenues (US$m) |
1 | Automotive manufacturing (24) | 1,089,873 |
2 | Tech products/equipment (26) | 1,020,051 |
3 | Consumer electronics (9) | 340,868 |
4 | Automotive components/equipment (10) | 223,594 |
5 | Machinery (13) | 168,837 |
6 | Electronic components (12) | 150,624 |
7 | Semiconductor (6) | 118,003 |
Sources: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, May 2021
Rankings by net profit | ||
Rank | Industry (number of firms) | Total net profit (US$m) |
1 | Tech products/equipment (26) | 43,256 |
2 | Automotive manufacturing (24) | 31,962 |
3 | Semicondcutor (6) | 26,898 |
4 | Consumer electronics (9) | 18,327 |
5 | Electronic components (12) | 6,741 |
6 | Automotive components/equipment (10) | 5,658 |
7 | Machinery (13) | 4,123 |
Source: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, May 2021
Rankings by market cap | ||
Rank | Industry (number of firms) | Total market cap (US$m) |
1 | Tech products/equipment (26) | 936,616 |
2 | Automotive manufacturing (24) | 761,423 |
3 | Semiconductor (6) | 729,305 |
4 | Consumer electronics (9) | 395,476 |
5 | Electronic components (12) | 280,684 |
6 | Machinery (13) | 155,225 |
7 | Automotive components/equipment (10) | 143,861 |
Source: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, May 2021
However, if the revenue figures are averaged out and compared, it can be found that the average-revenue rankings of the sectors have not changed, but their dollar gaps have narrowed considerably.
Rankings by average revenues | ||
Rank | Industry (number of firms) | Average revenues (US$m) |
1 | Automotive manufacturing (24) | 45,411 |
2 | Tech products/equipment (26) | 39,233 |
3 | Consumer electronics (9) | 37,874 |
4 | Automotive components/equipment (10) | 22,359 |
5 | Semiconductor (6) | 19,667 |
6 | Machinery technology (13) | 12,987 |
7 | Electronic components (12) | 12,552 |
Source: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, May 2021
Compared with the median, the revenue ranking of ICT terminal devices and equipment sector declined as the operating scale gap between Asian ICT terminal devices and equipment makers is too large. For instance, Samsung and Foxconn Technology scored revenues of US$201.062 billion and US$181.983 billion, respectively, in 2020 as the top two companies in the sector, far higher than the US$80.648 billion registered by the No. 3 maker Hitachi. As consumer electronics makers posted relatively similar revenue scales, the sector rose to the first place in the median revenue ranking.
The consumer electronics sector in various countries can be better gauged through its domestic market concentration. China has the largest number of consumer electronics makers who make the list due mainly to their high sales concentration in its huge domestic market. Japanese and Korean makers in the list are also internationally renowned brands, apart from high concentration of sales in their domestic markets.
Meanwhile, the ICT terminal devices and equipment sector outpaced the auto/motorcycle manufacturing sector in the rankings of total net profits, and semiconductors stayed unchanged in third place. But semiconductor companies in the list outperformed enterprises from other sectors in terms of both average and median net profits.
Rankings by average profit | ||
Rank | Industry (number of firms) | Average profit (US$m) |
1 | Semiconductor (6) | 4,483 |
2 | Consumer electronics (9) | 2,036 |
3 | Tech products/equipment (26) | 1,664 |
4 | Automotive manufacturing (24) | 1,332 |
5 | Automotive components/equipment (10) | 566 |
6 | Electronic components (12) | 562 |
7 | Machinery (13) | 317 |
Source: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, May 2021
Rankings by average market cap | ||
Rank | Industry (number of firms) | Average market cap (US$m) |
1 | Semiconductor (6) | 121,551 |
2 | Consumer electronics (9) | 43,942 |
3 | Tech products/equipment (26) | 36,024 |
4 | Automotive manufacturing (24) | 31,726 |
5 | Electronic components (12) | 23,390 |
6 | Automotive componets/equipment (10) | 14,386 |
7 | Machinery (13) | 11,940 |
Source: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, May 2021
The market value rankings reflect the market's recognition of the future business prospects for semiconductor companies. In the whole year of 2020, five out of the six semiconductor companies in the list registered high double-digit or even triple-digit gains in their market values. China's Longi led with a 290% increase, followed by MediaTek's 79%, TSMC's 69%, Tokyo Electron's 61%, SK Hynix's 34%, and ASE Technology's 4.8%.
The industrial supply chains are still undergoing a regionalization movement and the uncertainty of the pandemic continues to affect the supply/demand balance. After shortages of components improve gradually, the industries hardest hit by the pandemic may gradually get out of the woes. But some major trends have ushered in new paradigm shifts, which will be the focus of observation for the ASC 100 survey in the next few years.
