ASML N : CEO sees strong demand from logic chip makers in 2020

The chief executive of semiconductor chip equipment manufacturer ASML Holding NV said on Thursday the company continued to see strong demand from high-end computer chip makers, though the market for memory chips remained weak.

Peter Wennink was speaking at the Morgan Stanley European Technology, Media and Telecoms conference in Barcelona.

"Logic is strong, that will extend into 2020, we don't see any relief of that pressure," he said.

However "on the memory side we are still in the doldrums," he said.

He added that he expected the memory chip market to recover and was "positive" about it in the medium term.

ASML is a major supplier to semiconductor makers such as Samsung, TSMC and Intel. In October the company forecast sales of 3.9 billion euros (£3.4 billion) in the fourth quarter.

Wennink repeated a forecast that the company expects to ship 35 of its newest EUV lithography systems in 2020. He added the company would have capacity to ship 45-50 of them in 2021.

Lithography systems are used to create the circuitry of computer chips. Analysts estimate the company's newest EUV systems cost 130 million euros each.

(Reporting by Douglas Busvine; Writing by Toby Sterling; Editing by Mark Potter)