Ralink Technology has revealed that judging from current order visibility, shipments of its xDSL chips are expected to climb 30-40% in 2011. Shipments went up 46% in 2010, the company added.

Ralink also claimed it had about 23% of the global market for xDSL chips in 2010.

Ralink has reported consolidated revenues of NT$1.815 billion (US$61 million) for the fourth quarter of 2010, down 4.8% on quarter. Gross margin for the quarter slid 7.2pp sequentially to 37.1% due to changes in product mix and the NT dollar's appreciation.

Ralink said its gross margin for the first quarter of 2011 is expected to hold flat despite intense price competition. Shipments during the quarter are expected to grow by a single-digit rate sequentially, the company added. It shipped 25.8 million units, including Wi-Fi and ADSL chips, in the fourth quarter of 2010, up 15.2% on quarter and 49.3% on year.

Ralink's total chip shipments in 2010 climbed 67.7% to 88.4 million units, while sales grew 44.7% to NT$7.36 billion, according to the company.