North American PCB order growth bolsters Book-to-Bill ratio

Total North American PCB shipments decreased 3.4 percent in November 2014 from November 2013, bringing year-to-date shipment growth to -1.2 percent. Compared to the previous month, PCB shipments were down 5.0 percent. PCB bookings increased by 12.4 percent compared to November 2013, improving the year-to-date order growth rate to -0.1 percent. Order growth declined 25.5 percent in November compared to the previous month when orders were unusually strong. The North American PCB book-to-bill ratio edged up to 1.06 in November. “Although PCB sales in North American continued below last year’s level in November, orders again came in above last year,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “Strong orders in the fourth quarter have driven the book-to-bill ratio into positive territory, which offers hope that year-on-year PCB sales growth will turn positive in 2015,” she added.