January printed circuit board sales increase 3.7 percent in North America from same month last year

BANNOCKBURN, Ill., 2 March 2011.Rigid printed circuit board shipments in the U.S. and Canada increased 3.7 percent in January 2011 over the same month one year ago, report market analysts at IPC - the Association Connecting Electronics Industries in Bannockburn, Ill. Bookings of circuit boards, however, declined 7.7 percent over the same period.Flexible circuit shipments in January were up 10.7 percent while bookings were up 5.3 percent compared to January 2010, IPC analysts say. For rigid circuit boards and flexible circuits combined, industry shipments in January 2011 increased 4.3 percent from January 2010, as orders booked decreased 6.5 percent during the same period."Rigid PCB and flexible circuit sales followed normal seasonal patterns in January, with rigid sales decreasing and flex sales rebounding," says IPC President Denny McGuirk. "Orders still lag sales by a small margin. The good news is that sales in both segments are still ahead of the same month last year and the numbers look stable."

IPC released these market numbers in its monthly North American Printed Circuit Board (circuit board) Statistical Program. For more information contact the IPC online at www.ipc.org.