MUNICH -- Is the West coming back? SMT placement machine manufacturers saw orders hit new highs in January and February, topping even the marks during the beginning of previous boom years.

Europe and the Americas saw the highest growth rates, increasing their share of global electronics production to 13% and 12%, respectively, Siplace analysts said. China’s share dropped to 47%, falling below 50% for the first time since 2008-09.

Electronics manufacturers are investing again to update and expand their equipment, said Siplace, the former Siemens SMT equipment arm now owned by ASM.

"After a small correction at the end of 2010, producers started to invest in their production equipment again with the beginning of the New Year," said Stephanie Pepersack, head of Siplace market intelligence. "The Chinese market also grew compared to prior months, but Europe and the Americas are the new growth engines. This confirms our observation that the global market is returning to its regional pre-crisis structure."

Based on new order bookings, Siemens claims its market share rose by over 30% in the first two months of 2011 in Europe, and over 60% in China. It did not disclose the actual number of machines sold.

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