TOKYO -- Japan's September PCB sales rose 14.4% year-over-year to 85 billion yen, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI). Sales were up 3.9% over August.

According to analyst and PCD&M columnist Dominique Numakura, the September data are "an important barometer because they predict consumer electronics spending for the upcoming Christmas holiday."

Year to date, sales are up 16.5% over 2005. Volumes are not showing significant increases, however, which suggests that Japanese manufacturers are shifting to high-end, higher margin products, Numakura said in his weekly newsletter.

Rigid boards shipments rose 13.9% over last year, while flex circuits were up 2.8%.

September revenue of IC substrates fell 5.2% from August but was up 62.3% from 2005. "It is not clear whether this is a small hiccup, or the beginning of a long slowdown," Numakura wrote.