KUALA LUMPUR: AmInvestment Bank Bhd has reiterated its “overweight” stance on technology stocks, as it believes the sector is well supported by industry trends with the world embracing automation and various smart products.

       Citing the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics’ forecast, it said global sales for semiconductors are expected to grow to US$601bil (RM2.53 trillion) in 2022, up 8.8% year-on-year.

       “Demand for semiconductors will continue to be driven by transformative technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, autonomous electric vehicles and Internet of Things,” it said in a research note.

       On smartphone replacement cycle, AmInvestment Bank said that according to device data provider DeviceAtlas, the iPhone 7 (2016) and iPhone 8 (2017) remained the most popular iPhones in use at 10.35% and 8.83%, respectively, as at the third quarter of 2020.

       “We believe in 2022, many consumers will upgrade their iPhones to 5G-enabled ones as the technology becomes more prevalent and this is in line with the IDC forecast, which sees 5G units making up over half of smartphone shipments in 2022,” it said. — Bernama