BANNOCKBURN, IL — Total North American printed circuit board shipments in September were up 9.6% year-over-year, says IPC.

Year to date, shipments increased 10.2% compared to the same month last year. Sequentially, shipments increased 11.1%.

PCB orders for the month were down 3.9% year-over-year. Year-to-date orders grew 9.2% compared to September 2017. Sequentially, orders were down 4.4%.

The book-to-bill ratio for September retreated slightly to 1.04. 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 North American PCB industry sales growth trend continued for the 13th consecutive month, and the book-to-bill ratio remained above parity for the 20th straight month,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “A negative year-over-year growth rate for PCB orders in September after 15 months of continuous order growth, however, might be the first sign of a slow-down. The book-to-bill ratio is still in positive territory, indicating continued sales growth for the rest of this year, but it has decreased steadily since hitting a 12-year high early in 2018.”