PCB Shipments Down 1.9% in 2011 Jan 31, 2012

Printable format  Email this Article  Search

Combined rigid printed circuit board and flexible circuit shipments in December 2011 were down 5.1% from December 2010, according to IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries. Orders booked were down 2.8% from December 2010. Shipments in December 2011 were up 6.9% from November 2011; bookings were up 8.7%. The combined (rigid and flex) industry book-to-bill ratio in December 2011 increased to 1.00.

For full-year 2011 combined industry shipments were down 1.9% and bookings were down 8.1%.

Rigid PCB shipments were down 3.6% and bookings were up 0.1% in December 2011 from December 2010. Year to date, rigid PCB shipments were down 1.9% and bookings were down 8.8%. Rigid PCB shipments increased 7.2% from November 2011 and rigid bookings increased 10.7%. The book-to-bill ratio for the North American rigid PCB industry in December 2011 reached parity at 1.00.

Flexible circuit shipments in December 2011 were down 19.8% and bookings were down 27.7% from December 2010. Year to date, flexible circuit shipments were down 2.5% and bookings were down 0.4%. Compared to November 2011, flexible circuit shipments were up 2.9% and flex bookings were down 10.7%. The North American flexible circuit book-to-bill ratio in December 2011 grew to 1.03.

“North American PCB sales in December increased over the prior month and the book-to-bill ratio strengthened, reaching parity for the first time since last summer,” said Sharon Starr, IPC market research director. “North American PCB sales ended the year down 1.9% over 2010, but current indicators point to a resumption of modest growth in 2012,” she added.

Back to Daily News