Total Interconnect Market
Connectors + Cable Assemblies
By Ronald E. Bishop, Bishop & Associates Inc.

The electronic connector market achieved sales of $34,391 million in 2009, and will grow to $42,519 million in 2010, up 23.6 percent. These sales represent connector value only, and do not include cable assembly sales. When the value of the cable and the cost of the assembly process is taken into consideration, the total interconnect market is substantially larger.

Approximately 41 percent of all connectors are used on cable assemblies, generating an average of $6.45 in cable assembly sales for every dollar of connector value (connector plus cable assembly). This creates a total interconnect market for connector manufacturers of $109,142 million in 2009 figures. This market is 3.17 times larger than the market for connectors only.

2009 Total Interconnect Market
Connectors + Cable Assemblies By Region

In 2010, we project the connector and cable assembly market to achieve $136,768 million in sales, an increase of 25.3 percent, year-over-year. The largest growth will be in China, at 30.9 percent. The following table provides our forecast by region.

 2009/2010 Total Interconnect Market
By Region

The strongest market sectors for growth in 2010 are computers and peripherals, at 30.6 percent, and telecom and datacom at 29.2 percent. The slowest growth will be in the transportation market, at 19.7 percent. Compared to 2009, this is still a substantial increase in sales.

The following table provides our total 2010 world forecast for connectors and cable assemblies by market sector. 

2009/2010 Connectors + Cable Assemblies
Growth by Market Sector

Equipment manufacturers and contract manufacturers increasingly want suppliers to provide more of a total interconnect solution. As a result, providing customers with value-added content increases revenue and creates an important competitive advantage for connector companies. Segments of the cable assembly market also generate greater profit margins than those achieved by selling connectors alone.

If you would like to subscribe to the Connector Industry Forecast, go to www.connectorindustry.com and select “Research Reports.” You may also contact us at bishop@bishopinc.com, or by calling 630.443.2702.