Printed Circuit Design & Fab Online Magazine - Market News

Market News

PHOENIX -- White Electronic Designs Corp. reported second-quarter revenue of $17.1 million, a 29% increase sequentially. Gross margin was 43% compared with 41% last year.

TORONTO – Coretec Inc. reported first-quarter sales rose 9.2% from last year to $20.2 million, mainly due to the US/Canadian dollar exchange rate.

PORTLAND, OR – Electro Scientific Industries (ESI) reported fourth-quarter sales fell 29% from last quarter to $18.1 million. For the year, sales dropped 36% to $157.3 million.

GAAP net loss for the quarter was $14.9 million compared to $29.3 million in the third quarter. Fourth-quarter net loss included a charge of $9 million associated with restructuring, write-offs, impairment and expenses related to the Zygo transaction.

For the year, GAAP net loss was $51 million, compared to a net income of $16.6 million last year.

Quarter-on-quarter, non-GAAP net loss increased from $5.8 million to $7.1 million. Fourth-quarter orders fell to $16.1 million compared to $21.2 million last quarter.

Non-GAAP net loss was $9.1 million compared to $23.5 million in 2008.

At the end of the fourth quarter, ESI announced that it had agreed with Zygo Corp. to end their merger agreement. ESI received $5.4 million in break up fees.

BEIJING – China’s mobile phone sales increased 11.6% sequentially to 13.04 million units in March, according to a report published by CCID Consulting and reported by DigiTimes.

LONDON – Revenues for semiconductors in the industrial sector exceeded those in the automotive sector for the first time in 2008, says Semicast Research.

TAIPEI, TAIWAN – Although the handset PCB market saw orders improve slightly in the second quarter, manufacturers remain cautious. Orders are expected to remain level in May, with a minor drop in June, reports DigiTimes.

Compeq Manufacturing reported consolidated revenues for April dropped 12%, shipping 34 million handset PCBs in the first quarter. May and June revenues are forecast to fall slightly.

Unitech Printed Circuit Board reported April revenues increased 3.38% to NT$643 million (US$19.57 million). The utilization rate at its Taiwan facility has grown to 75% on demand for smartphones. May revenue is forecast to remain level, with a 10% decrease in June, says DigiTimes.