'Future of semi-conductor industry bright' even when chips are down

Singapore

EUROPEAN chipmaker STMicroelectronics, which makes nearly half of its products here, doubled its capacity for a key semiconductor product with an expanded wafer fab facility in Ang Mo Kio that opened on Tuesday.

Shrugging off a global electronics downturn that has cut factory and export numbers to the bone, chief executive Jean-Marc Chery believes the company's focus on industrial applications will keep revenues steady.