KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 24): North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted US$1.32 billion in orders worldwide in Jan 2016 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 1.08, according to the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI).

A book-to-bill of 1.08 means that US$108 worth of orders were received for every US$100 of product billed for the month.

In a statetement on its website on Feb 23, SEMI said the bookings figure was 1.4% lower than the final December 2015 level of US$1.35 billion, and is 3.7% lower than the Jan 2015 order level of US$1.28 billion.

SEMI president and CEO Denny McGuirk said recent semiconductor order activity is on par with the figures reported one year ago.

“While uncertainty clouds the near-term economic outlook, we currently expect 2016 capex to remain in range of 2015 spending,” he said.