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Chip equipment orders sink

Chip equipment orders were down in January, reflecting a continued downturn in the semiconductor market. The Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI) says that the January book-to-bill ratio, a three-month average of the number of orders placed vs. the amount of equipment shipped, was 0.81. When compared with SEMI's December 2000 book-to-bill ratio of 0.99, which is about even, orders placed in January were 19 percent lower than the amount of equipment shipped. SEMI said $1.9 billion worth of orders were booked in January, down 21 percent from December's $2.4 billion. Average shipments in January were $2.3 billion, down from December's $2.4 billion.

John G. Spooner Staff Writer, CNET News.com
John Spooner
covers the PC market, chips and automotive technology.
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John G. Spooner
Chip equipment orders were down in January, reflecting a continued downturn in the semiconductor market. The Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI) says that the January book-to-bill ratio, a three-month average of the number of orders placed vs. the amount of equipment shipped, was 0.81.

When compared with SEMI's December 2000 book-to-bill ratio of 0.99, which is about even, orders placed in January were 19 percent lower than the amount of equipment shipped. SEMI said $1.9 billion worth of orders were booked in January, down 21 percent from December's $2.4 billion. Average shipments in January were $2.3 billion, down from December's $2.4 billion.