Analysis |
North American PCB industry growth cycle continues
IPC's August 2018 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program shows a continued year-over-year growth for industry sales and orders. The book-to-bill ratio for August held steady at 1.05.
Total North American PCB shipments in August 2018 were up 8.7% compared to the same month last year. This year to date, shipments are 10.3% above the same period last year. Compared to the preceding month, August shipments increased 6.5%.
PCB bookings in August increased 6.8% year-over-year. Year-to-date order growth was 11.0% above the same period last year. Bookings in August were up 9.4% from the previous month.
“North American PCB industry sales and orders continued to grow in August compared to the previous month and the same period last year,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “August was the 12th consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth and the 15th month of continuous order growth. The book-to-bill ratio in August remained above parity (1.0) for the 19th consecutive month, which is a positive indicator of continued growth for the rest of this year.”
