WASHINGTON, DC — The 90-day moving average worldwide semiconductor sales rose 2.1% year-over-year in the September quarter, the Semiconductor Industry Association said today.

Sales were up 2.7% sequentially to $25.8 billion, SIA said. Year-to-date sales are up 2.2%.

"September’s global sales demonstrate an optimistic close to the third quarter,” said Brian Toohey, SIA president. “While global economic uncertainty creates limited visibility for the remainder of the year, recent positive indicators and developments in the US and Europe are encouraging.”

For the period, Japan saw sales rise 13.7% quarter-over-quarter, driven by progress made in local recovery efforts coupled with strong demand for automotive applications and mobile processing in handheld devices like smart phones, tablets and eReaders added to the quarter-over-quarter increase. An updated World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) forecast is expected to be released at the end of November.