As sales of electronic products in United States
grew from some $200 million in 1927 to over $266 billion in
1990, the electronics industry transformed factories, offices,
and homes, emerging as a key economic sector that rivaled the
chemical, steel, and auto industries in size. In the 1960's, the
U.S. consumer electronics industry went into decline as
manufacturers were unable to compete with the quality and
pricing of foreign products, especially the electronics goods
produced by Japanese companies such as Sony and Hitachi. But in
1980's, however, U.S. manufacturers became the world leaders in
semiconductor development and assembly. And the 1990's
semiconductors were essential components of personal computers
and most other electronic items (including cellular telephones,
televisions, medical equipment, and "Smart” appliances). While
U.S. companies are still a major presence in the semiconductor
industry (representing about 40 percent of world sales. in
1998), the consumer items themselves are mostly made overseas.
Worldwide electronics sales were nearly $700 billion 1997.
