FRANKFURT, GERMANY – Germany-based PWB fabricators reported orders and sales both rose sequentially in September, suggesting a recovery in progress in Europe's largest circuit board market. 

Orders, in terms of euros, were up 23% from August, the VdL and ZVEI trade groups said. Revenues grew about 11% during the period.

The book-to-bill rose 110 basis points to 1.07 for the period. A ratio above 1.0 is considered an indicator of a growing market.

Nevertheless, sales for the month were down about 25% from September last year. Year to date, sales are down 33% from a year ago.