Semicon equipment: May'09 book-to-bill ratio 0.74

SAN JOSE, USA: North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $288.5 million in orders in May 2009 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.74 according to the May 2009 Book-to-Bill Report published by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 0.74 means that $74 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in May 2009 was $288.5 million. The bookings figure is about 16 percent greater than the final April 2009 level of $249 million, and about 72 percent less than the $1.03 billion in orders posted in May 2008.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in May 2009 was $391.9 million. The billings figure is just over 1 percent greater than the final April 2009 level of $385.7 million, and about 72 percent less than the May 2008 billings level of $1.31 billion.

"Bookings for the North American semiconductor equipment market are still near historically low levels, though the sharp declines have subsided,” said Dan Tracy, senior director of Industry Research and Statistics at SEMI. “While recent industry data show increased semiconductor device unit sales, the industry is waiting for stronger signals to increase capital investments.”

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of US dollars.Source: SEMI June 2009