Despite swiftly evolving technologies and tumbling prices, Asia's high technology leaders maintain generally sound credit quality. But pricing pressures and intense competition have hastened consolidation among smaller players, even in markets that have not yet matured, and the sector as a whole will likely see more mergers in the longer term as conditions tighten and China joins the fray.
High-tech industries suffer from significant business risk due to the short lifespan of their technologies, cyclical demand, and - for many suppliers - large capital expenditure requirements. Fiscal 2003 marked a turnaround year for some high-tech markets, such as semiconductor chips, while price pressures have become intense for liquid crystal displays LC...
