MARCH 27--IPC-Association Connecting Electronics Industries (Northbrook, IL; www.ipc.org) has announced the findings from its monthly Interconnect Manufacturing Services (IMS)/Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The US IMS/PCB industry book-to-bill ratio for February 2003 was 1.03. Sales billed (shipments) in February 2003 decreased 23.6% from February 2002, and orders booked decreased 16.2% from February 2002. Compared to 2002, bookings of PCBs are down 18.8% year-to-date, while shipments of PCBs are down 23.4% year-to-date.
The IMS/PCB Business Report, an IPC statistical report that tracks the dynamics of the US IMS industry, reported the IMS/PCB shipment index was 103.0 and the IMS/PCB booking index was 101.4 for February 2003. The IPC IMS/PCB shipment index in February 2003 increased 12.1% from 91.9 in January 2003, and the IPC IMS/PCB booking index in February 2003 decreased 3.0% from 104.5 in January 2003.
