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IPC Releases IMS/PCB Book-to-Bill Ratio and Business Report for May 2004
June 28, 2004 |Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Northbrook, Ill. — IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries announces the findings from its monthly Interconnect Manufacturing Services (IMS)/Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program.
The IPC PCB Presidents Council recently selected IMS as a better designation for the PCB industry to better reflect the services provided to customers.
The North American IMS/PCB Industry Book-to-Bill Ratio for May 2004 remained steady at 1.11. The ratio is calculated by averaging the index numbers for orders booked over the past three months and dividing by the average index numbers for sales billed during the same period. A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which indicates probable near-term growth.
Industry sales billed (shipments) in May 2004 increased 41.3 percent from May 2003, and orders booked increased 62.4 percent from May 2003.
Compared to 2003, shipments of PCBs are up 36.3 percent year-to-date, while bookings of PCBs are up 50.3 percent year-to-date.
The IMS/PCB Business Report, an IPC statistical report that tracks the dynamics of the U.S. IMS industry, reported the IMS/PCB shipment index was 138.7 and the IMS/PCB booking index was 168.8 for May 2004. The IPC IMS/PCB shipment index in May 2004 increased 5.5 percent from 131.4 in April 2004, and the IPC IMS/PCB booking index in May 2004 increased 23.8 percent from 136.3 in April 2004.
The index shows how current PCB shipments and bookings relate to an index point. In this case, 1992 was chosen as the index point because it was a stable growth year for U.S. PCB manufacturers. A shipment index number of 117.0, for example, indicates that shipments are 17 percent higher than average monthly shipments in 1992.
The indices are calculated by setting the base year (1992) equal to 100 and then multiplying the monthly growth rates of the actual shipments and bookings by the corresponding index number.
Percentages based on the index numbers reflect changes in the size of the industry. Data reported by current participants in IPC's monthly survey, however, show how companies in the industry today are doing. These participating companies report that their shipments increased 43.8 percent in May 2004 over May 2003, and that their orders booked increased 67.0 percent in May, year-over-year. Year-to-date, current survey participants report shipments have increased 33.0 percent and bookings have increased 47.8 percent over the same period in 2003.
Together, these figures show a North American PCB industry that is rebounding.
The information in IPC's monthly industry statistics is based on data provided by both rigid and flexible PCB manufacturers that participate in IPC's monthly IMS Statistical Program. It is estimated that these companies represent approximately 60 percent of the U.S. IMS industry. IPC publishes the IMS Book-to-Bill Ratio and the IMS Business Report each month. (Statistics for the previous month are not available until the last week of the following month.)
IPC is a trade association dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its more than 2,200 member companies, which represent all facets of the electronic interconnection industry, including design, printed circuit board manufacturing and electronics assembly. For more information, visit www.ipc.org.