Exhibit 99.1

                                                          INVESTOR CONTACT:
                                                                   Tim Iris
                                                      Phone: (631) 847-3169
                                                          tiris@gensemi.com

                                                            MEDIA CONTACTS:
                                    George Sard/David Reno/Jonas Leddington
                                                    Citigate Sard Verbinnen
                                                      Phone: (212) 687-8080

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


       GENERAL SEMICONDUCTOR UPDATES SECOND QUARTER BUSINESS OUTLOOK

MELVILLE, NY - JUNE 15, 2001 - GENERAL SEMICONDUCTOR, INC. (NYSE:SEM), a
leading manufacturer of power management devices, today updated its
business outlook for the second quarter. Due to a continued weakness in
demand from most of its end markets, the Company expects second quarter
revenues to be down 15 to 17 percent from the $102.0 million reported in
the previous quarter. The Company expects diluted earnings per share for
the second quarter of about $0.01 to $0.03.

Ronald A. Ostertag, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of General
Semiconductor, said, "The semiconductor business is a cyclical business,
and, like our peers, our revenues have been affected by the current market
environment. We believe this slowdown to be temporary, and are confident
that our power management strategy will provide strong long-term growth for
General Semiconductor. New product sales continue to grow, and we remain
committed to maintaining our increased level of investment in new product
development, currently up 65 to 75 percent over 2000."

Mr. Ostertag continued, "We are seeing signs that the business is
stabilizing. Cancellation rates have decreased since the first quarter and
new orders have increased in May and early June compared to the very weak
levels recorded in April.

"With the weak market conditions negatively affecting our margins, we are
also reviewing all of our operations in order to maximize our profitability
and further streamline the business. At the same time, we are working to
make sure that we are fully prepared to capitalize on the recovery in
demand for our power management products."

General Semiconductor will announce second quarter results on July 19,
2001.

ABOUT GENERAL SEMICONDUCTOR

General Semiconductor, Inc. is a market leader in the design, manufacture
and distribution of power semiconductor components. The Company provides
customers with a broad array of power management products including
rectifiers, transient voltage suppressors, small signal transistors, diodes
and MOSFETs and Analog ICs. Its global customer base includes original
equipment manufacturers, electronic distributors and contract equipment
manufacturers. Key markets for its products include automotive, computers,
consumer and telecommunications equipment.

                   VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT: www.gensemi.com
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The information set forth above includes "forward-looking" information and,
accordingly, the cautionary statements contained in Exhibit 99 to the
Company's Form 10-K and Form 10-Q filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission are incorporated herein by reference. General Semiconductor's
actual results could differ materially from the "forward-looking"
information in this press release.