Second quarter profit and revenue below analysts’ estimates

Chip gear maker Applied Materials forecast second quarter profit and revenue below analysts’ estimates.

Chip making could be picking up

There are signs that chip making might be starting to pick up after one of the largest supplier of tools used to make semiconductors turned in a bigger than expected profit.

Half of R&D spent on new processing

More than half of the IC foundries combined R&D budgets are being spent researching 10nm, according to Applied Materials Taiwan president Erix Yu.

Rivals Applied Materials

Lam Research is buying KLA-Tencor Corp. for about $10.6 billion and will turn itself into a significant rival to Applied Materials in the chipmaking equipment market.

Anti-trust

The largest manufacturers of the machinery used to make semiconductors, Applied Materials and Tokyo Electron of Japan, have dumped a merger plans.