SAN JOSE – North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.07 billion in orders in April, down 32% year-over-year, SEMI reported.

The three-month average book-to-bill ratio was 0.81, meaning that $81 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

April bookings were off 8% from revised March levels.

The 90-day average billings were $1.32 billion, down 2% sequentially and 17% from April 2007.

“Relatively flat bookings and billings for North American semiconductor equipment reflect the continued conservative mood of the industry,” said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "A number of fab projects have been put on-hold or delayed until 2009, and the current equipment data reflect this trend."