SAN JOSE, CA — North America-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers reported orders rose faster than shipments in April, but remained well below last year's figures.

The 90-day moving average orders were $1.17 billion in April, up 6.4% from the revised March level but 26.8% lower from April 2012. Billings rose 9.3% from the final March number to $1.08 billion, but were down 25.7% from last year.

The book-to-bill ratio was 1.08, A book-to-bill of 1.08 means that $108 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month. It was the fourth straight month the book-to-bill ratio climbed.

The data are provided by the SEMI trade group.

Source: SEMI, May 2013