VIENNA, AUSTRIA -- AT&S forecasts sales to top 535 million euros ($775 million) this year, and possibly reach 550 million euros, on higher demand for HDI PCBs. That's up from 372 million euros in the fiscal year ended March 2010, and between 470 million and 500 million in the fiscal year ended March 2011. The company's EBIT margin is expected to remain above 9% in the coming fiscal year, according to reports.

Europe's largest printed circuit board fabricator plans to invest 200 million euros ($290 million) in an HDI factory in Chongqing, a major automotive production center and one of only four direct-controlled municipalities in China (the others are Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin). About $218 million of the investment will be for equipment and staffing, according to published reports.

Ed: 1 EUR = 1.45065 USD