North American Semiconductor Equipment Industry Posts October 2012 Book-to-Bill Ratio of 0.75

SAN JOSE, Calif. — November 15, 2012 — North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $743.2 million in orders worldwide in October 2012 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.75, according to the October Book-to-Bill Report published today by SEMI.  A book-to-bill of 0.75 means that $75 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.

The three-month average of worldwide bookings in October 2012 was $743.2 million. The bookings figure is 18.6 percent lower than the revised September 2012 level of $912.8 million, and is 19.8 percent lower than the October 2011 order level of $926.8 million.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in October 2012 was $986.5 million. The billings figure is 15.3 percent lower than the revised September 2012 level of $1.16 billion, and is 21.6 percent less than the September 2011 billings level of $1.26 billion.

“Semiconductor industry investments remain muted as the industry enters the fourth quarter,” said Denny McGuirk, president and CEO of SEMI. ““Investments in leading-edge technologies will continue to drive spending in the near-term, while a clearer 2013 outlook will emerge over the next couple of months as capex plans are announced.”

The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving averages of worldwide bookings and billings for North American-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers. Billings and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars.

	Billings (3-mo. avg)	Bookings (3-mo. avg)	Book-to-Bill
May 2012	1,539.3	1,613.7	1.05
June 2012	1,535.7	1,424.3	0.93
July 2012	1,442.8	1,234.6	0.86
August 2012 (final)	1,331.5	1,092.9	0.82
September 2012 (revised)	1,164.4	912.8	0.78
October 2012 (prelim)	986.5	743.2	0.75

Source: SEMI, November 2012

The data contained in this release were compiled by David Powell, Inc., an independent financial services firm, without audit, from data submitted directly by the participants. SEMI and David Powell, Inc. assume no responsibility for the accuracy of the underlying data.

The data are contained in a monthly Book-to-Bill Report published by SEMI. The report tracks billings and bookings worldwide of North American-headquartered manufacturers of equipment used to manufacture semiconductor devices, not billings and bookings of the chips themselves. The Book-to-Bill report is one of three reports included with the Equipment Market Data Subscription (EMDS).

SEMI is the global industry association serving the nano- and micro-electronic manufacturing supply chains. Our 2,000 member companies are the engine of the future, enabling smarter, faster and more economical products that improve our lives. Since 1970, SEMI has been committed to helping members grow more profitably, create new markets and meet common industry challenges. SEMI maintains offices in Beijing, Bengaluru, Berlin, Brussels, Grenoble, Hsinchu, Moscow, San Jose, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.semi.org.

Notes:

• Next SEMI Book-to-Bill: December 18, 2012 at 3:00pm PST  
• The SEMI North American Book-to-Bill data trends include estimates for some North American companies that do not participate in the SEMI data collection program.  Estimates are based on most current public financial statements and announcements from companies, in addition to analysis of overall equipment industry trends.  These estimates represent up to approximately 20 percent of the SEMI Book-to-Bill.
• Beginning with the July 2012 data, SEMI returns to a reporting format that accommodates two months of data refinement (revision): the first month of data is labeled ‘preliminary’; the second month, the data is labeled ‘revised’; and the third month, the data is labeled ’final’.  This reporting procedure was used for the SEMI North American Book-to-Bill up until October 2001. 
• For information on SEAJ Book-to-Bill Report, visit www.seaj.or.jp