SEMI : NAND boosts semiconductor equipment spending
According to SEMI, the North American equipment industry in May 2013 book-to-bill ratio was1.08
North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.32 billion in orders worldwide in May 2013.
This was based on a three-month average basis. Over the same period, the book-to-bill ratio was 1.08, according to the May EMDS Book-to-Bill Report published by SEMI.
A book-to-bill of 1.08 means that $108 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.
The three-month average of worldwide bookings in May 2013 was $1.32 billion. The bookings figure is 12.5 percent higher than the final April 2013 level of $1.17 billion, and is 18.1 percent lower than the May 2012 order level of $1.61 billion.
The three-month average of worldwide billings in May 2013 was $1.22 billion. The billings figure is 12.6 percent higher than the final April 2013 level of $1.09 billion, and is 20.5 percent lower than the May 2012 billings level of $1.54 billion.
The figures reported by SEMI are shown in the table below.
"The SEMI Book-to-Bill continues to show steady improvement as the ratio remains at or above parity for the fifth consecutive month," says Daniel P. Tracy, senior director of Industry Research and Statistics at SEMI. "The spending outlook for the year is improving as foundries continue to invest in advanced technologies and NAND manufacturers plan to increase spending on equipment."
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 U.S. dollars.