While semiconductor spending habits are changing, the leading nation in electronic equipment design activity that influences chip spending remains the United States, with a projected $68.7 bln in design-inspired chip purchasing in 2007, up 9% from $63.1 bln in 2006. The only country that even comes close to this is Japan, with a projected $44.1 bln in 2007, up 4.7% from $42.1 bln in 2006, iSuppli says.