BANNOCKBURN, IL - (NOTE: DATA REVISED MARCH 8) - The January 90-day moving average shipments of all types of circuit boards rose 9.2% year-on-year, according to the latest poll of U.S. PCB fabricators. Aided by a boost in demand for rigid circuits, bookings were strong, up 20.2%. This was on the heels of a climb of 30% in December.

However, a large percentage of the "production" includes boards built offshore and distributed by North American vendors. According to IPC, which takes the poll, 35% of the shipments reported were produced offshore.

The domestic book-to-bill ratio was up 0.04 points to 1.08. It was the second month in a row the key indicator was above 1.0.

The ratio is based on data collected by IPC from rigid and flex producers and is calculated by dividing three months worth of orders by sales. A ratio over 1.0 is considered an indicator of rising demand.

Separately, the ratios were 1.0 for rigid PCBs and 1.36 for flexible circuits.

Rigid board shipments, estimated by IPC to make up 75% of all domestic PCBs, were up 12.4% in January vs. a year ago. Bookings were up 9% for the month. Flex sales grew 46.9%, and bookings more than doubled, up 160%.

Sequentially, flex bookings dropped 37% and shipments fell 2%. Rigid shipments were up 5% and bookings climbed 10% sequentially.

Domestic production accounted for 75% of rigid and 31% of flex circuit shipments in January, IPC said.

Flex sales include some value-added services in addition to the bare flex circuits.

In a statement, IPC cautioned that month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they may reflect cyclical effects.

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