BANNOCKBURN, IL – Total North American printed circuit board shipments decreased 1.6% year-over-year in August. Orders decreased 9.1% compared to August 2012, says IPC.

Year to date, PCB industry shipments were down 3.9% year-over-year, and orders were down 1%.

Sequentially, PCB shipments in August were up 5.3%, while orders fell 8.1%.

The PCB book-to-bill ratio dropped to parity at one. A ratio of more than one suggests current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to six months.

Until August, year-over-year sales growth had been improving steadily in recent months, bolstered by solid growth in orders since the beginning of 2013. Orders fell below last year’s levels in June and August this year, bringing down the book-to-bill ratio, which had been positive for the previous seven months, says IPC.

“Just as the North American PCB industry began showing signs of renewed growth, it was hit by some negative market developments, most notably reductions in US military spending,” said IPC’s director of market research Sharon Starr. “This was especially evident in sales of rigid flexible circuits. Still, the long run of positive book-to-bill ratios we have just seen indicates good fundamental demand that will support sales growth later in the year."