North American PCB business growth continues

Total North American PCB shipments in September 2019 were up 3.8% compared to the same month last year. Year-to-date sales growth as of September remained positive at 7.0%. Compared to the preceding month, September shipments increased 10.2 percent. PCB bookings in September increased 12.2% year-over-year, pushing year-to-date order growth up to 3.0%. Bookings in September were up 2.5% from the previous month. “Business growth is continuing in the North American PCB industry, based on uniformly positive September results in both sales and orders, as well as an increase in the book-to-bill ratio,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “The growth cycle that began in mid-2017 has continued for over two years, although year-on-year growth rates have been modest in recent months. The strengthening book-to-bill ratios in the last two months are good news, but they were preceded by three months at or below parity. This indicates the likelihood of slow but mostly positive sales growth in the next two quarters.”