Prices are rising across Japan, but not for the components of chipmaking gear. Tokyo Electron Ltd. supplier Marumae Co. is seeking out deals to change that.
Many Japanese makers of vacuum parts found in chip tools have yet to reap gains from an AI boom that’s spurring billions of dollars of spending on Nvidia Corp. chips and other hardware, according to Marumae President Toshikazu Maeda. That’s because such manufacturers are fighting with dozens of other companies in Japan that specialize in creating air-tight spaces inside bigger machines — a niche but essential area worth less than ¥100 billion ($680 million) in domestic sales.
AloJapan.com