KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 23): North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted US$1.60 billion in orders worldwide in September 2015 (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 1.07, according to the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI).

A book-to-bill of 1.07 means that US$107 worth of orders were received for every US$100 of product billed for the month.

In a statetement on its website on Oct 22, SEMI said the bookings figure was 4.1% lower than the final August 2015 level of US$1.67 billion, and is 35.1% higher than the September 2014 order level of US$1.19 billion.

SEMI president and CEO Denny McGuirk said both bookings and billings trended slightly lower in the September three-month average compared to August.

“While year-to-date billings through the first three quarters are above 2014 billings, uncertainty with semiconductor demand has dampened expectations with capex plans in the near-term,” he said.