According to results released by research house Gartner Inc said yesterday, the Asia-Pacific semiconductor industry will grow at a world-fastest rate of 27.4% to reach US$90.8 billion this year, with the industry expected to average 14.3% annual growth over the next four years to be worth US$138.8 billion, up from US$71.3 billion last year.

Gartner's Singapore-based principal analyst Philip Koh, noted that "China, the electronic manufacturing hub of the world, is expected to continue to lead the industry in the region." In China, which is the third largest semiconductor market, Gartner forecasts demand will grow 33% this year to US$39.7 billion and then see an average 18.2% in annual growth to reach US$68.6 billion by 2008. Taiwan ranked third.