December 10, 1996 11:15 AM ET
Book-to-bill ratio shows surge in chip market
By Margaret Kane

The Semiconductor Industry Association late yesterday announced that the book-to-bill ratio, a key industry indicator, had risen to 1.15 in November. The book-to-bill measures incoming orders against outgoing sales, and anything higher than 1 is regarded as a sign of strength for the semiconductor PC industries. November's ratio was the highest the indicator has been since October 1995. The SIA reported that new orders rose by $235.2 million from October of this year, an increase of 6.3 percent. "Given all that has happened in 1996, it's best to use caution in evaluating these numbers," said Doug Andrey, director of information systems and finance for the SIA , in a release. "But they are undeniably the best marks we've seen for the Americas market all year." The SIA also revised the October ratio to 1.11 from 1.10. Copyright(c) 1996 Ziff-Davis Publishing Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Ziff-Davis Publishing Company is prohibited. PC Week and the PC Week logo are trademarks of Ziff-Davis Publishing Company. PC Week Online and the PC Week Online logo are trademarks of Ziff-Davis Publishing Company. Send mail to PC Week