BANNOCKBURN, IL — Rigid PCB shipments by North American fabricators rose 8% in August while bookings climbed 7.7% year-over-year, according to a monthly poll. Flex circuit shipments were up 27% and bookings were up 30.5% percent, IPC said.

The rigid board book-to-bill ratio rose 0.04 points to 1.06, and the flex circuit book-to-bill ratio was up 0.04 points to 1.05. The overall ratio was also 1.05, up 0.03 points. The ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period. A ratio of more than 1.0 suggests probable near-term growth.

Year to date, rigid PCB shipments are up 10.6%, and bookings are up 13.8%. Flex circuit shipments are up 4.5%, bookings are down 8.4%.

Combined shipments in August increased 9.3% from a year ago and bookings increased 9%. Year to date, combined shipments are up 10.2%, bookings are up 12.1%. Rigid PCBs make up an estimated 85% of the North American market, IPC said.

The data reflect sales, not production, IPC notes. For the month, 89% of the PCB shipments reported were produced in the U.S. or Canada. Furthermore, about 26% of the flex circuit sales comes from value-added services.

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