Worldwide semiconductor capital spending is projected to decline 2 per cent in 2016 to $62.8 billion (€55 billion), according to Gartner. While this is an improvement on the 4.7 per cent decline in Gartner's previous quarterly forecast, the company noted that the outlook is still bleak. It stated that excess inventory and weak demand for PCs, tablets, and mobile products continue to plague the semiconductor industry, resulting in a slow growth rate that began in late 2015 and is continuing into 2016. The market is expected to return to growth in 2017, when overall spending projected to increase by 4.4 per cent. Release