IPC recently announced the June 2021 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.15. Total North American PCB shipments in June 2021 were up 6.3% compared to the same month last year. Compared to the preceding month, June shipments grew 17.3%. PCB bookings in June rose 19.4% compared to the 2020 month and 28.9% compared to May 2021.

“We saw strong PCB orders in June, outstripping any month since early 2006,” said Shawn DuBravac, IPC’s chief economist. “The electronics supply remains constrained and companies continue to look for any available capacity. Shipments also picked up strongly during the month, suggesting some disruptions are starting to improve and companies are increasingly able to fulfill incoming orders.”

The book-to-bill ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in IPC’s survey sample. A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to twelve months. A ratio of less than 1.00 indicates the reverse.

Year-on-year and year-to-date growth rates provide the most meaningful view of industry growth. Month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they reflect seasonal effects and short-term volatility. Because bookings tend to be more volatile than shipments, changes in the book-to-bill ratios from month to month might not be significant unless a trend of more than three consecutive months is apparent. It is also important to consider changes in both bookings and shipments to understand what is driving changes in the book-to-bill ratio.

Learn more about IPC’s findings at www.ipc.org.