Taiwan microcontroller unit (MCU) maker Holtek Semiconductor expects to see revenue growth in June thanks to short-lead time orders from makers of induction cookers in China. Holtek's shipments of touch switch controllers will also increase sequentially in the second quarter, according to the company.

Due to an influx of short-term orders as well as fewer working days in May, some shipments had to be delayed to the first week of June, resulting in a better sales performance this month, the company explained.

Although MCU orders are increasing, general demand still cannot reach the peak-season levels of previous years, added the company.

Holtek's current touch controllers are used in switches for home appliances, set-top box (STB) panels and lighting fixtures, as well as PC keyboards. The company shipped about two million touch switch controllers in the first quarter, accounting for 2-3% of its total revenues, and it expects to have a sequential shipment growth for the segment in the second quarter.

But Holtek said it currently has no plan to develop touchscreen ICs, as competition in the segment is fierce.

In other news, Weltrend Semiconductor also started shipping a small amount of touch key controllers for home appliance, STBs and gaming peripheral products in the first quarter, and it has cut into the capacitive touch panel supply chain with products used in ATM panels, according to industry sources.

Pixart Imaging and Sonix Technology have entered the optical touchscreen market and expect to see significant contributions from the segment in the second half of 2009, the sources said.

Ene Technology has introduced touch ICs for notebooks, handsets and mobile Internet devices (MIDs), while Silicon Integrated Systems (SiS) will begin touch IC shipments for handset and large-size panels in the third quarter and the second half of this year, respectively, the sources added.