Despite demand remaining high, the semiconductor industry is still struggling to produce enough microchips to keep the world running. The two-year pandemic has caused an upset in the supply chains of many products across the world. Few people realized what a drastic effect the microchip shortage would have on the production of so many other products. Let’s take a look at the current situation and how it is predicted to affect the global market of computer stocks going forward.
Affected Industries
Several automakers have had to stop production recently because of the chip shortage. Automobile sales have declined because, without these needed chips, cars just can’t be produced.
Not only vehicles, but game consoles, networking gear, and even medical devices have all been affected. In truth, there is really no branch of technology that has not felt at least some of the pain resulting from the lack of supply. Even companies like Apple have had to admit that the lack of chip supply has put a crimp in the financial results for the last two years. Predictions from Intel are warning that the lack could even keep affecting production into 2023.
The CPUs and GPUs used in smartphones and game machines have been some of the hardest hit. This also has a huge effect on business computer repair as many businesses rely on these necessary chips to conduct business.
The Big Picture
Beyond the obvious effect the microchip scarcity is having on production, there is also the bigger overall effect the shortage causes on computer part stocks. This produces a ripple effect that can cause problems for all types of businesses involved in the tech industry.
As the supply chain becomes stretched in unprecedented ways, it causes many problems that are difficult to identify and difficult to solve once they are discovered. As is always the case with supply shortages, demand is growing far faster than production can keep up.
Many are surprised that the supply chain is taking so long to catch up, and the global economy to equalize following the worldwide pandemic shutdowns. It doesn’t help that the exodus of employees seeking work at home remote jobs has caused a huge swell in the need for top-of-the-line technology. This only adds to the complications affecting the supply chain issues.
It is estimated that the supply chain problems with semiconductors will not catch up until well into 2023.