BANNOCKBURN, IL – Total North American printed circuit board orders in May increased 21.2% year-over-year, says IPC. Year-to-date orders grew 14.4% compared to the same period last year . Orders were up 6.3% sequentially.

May PCB shipments were up 11.7% year-over-year. Year to date, shipments were up 10%. Sequentially, May shipments increased 1.9%.

The book-to-bill ratio strengthened to 1.09. A ratio of more than one suggests current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to twelve months.

“The pace of growth increased yet again for the North American PCB industry in May,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “Sales growth was positive year-over-year for the ninth consecutive month, and sales grew at the fastest pace in more than seven years. Order growth has been strong for the past 12 months. The book-to-bill ratio is above parity (1.0) for the 16th consecutive month, which is a positive indicator of continued growth this year.”

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