Circuits Assembly - December 2007 - (Page 12)

W TCH A Computers, Semis Take September Fall Trends in the U.S. electronics equipment market (shipments only). % Change YTD July Augustr Sept.* Computers and electronics products Computers Storage devices Other peripheral equipment Nondefense communications equipment Defense communications equipment A/V equipment Semiconductors Components1 Nondefense search and navigation equipment Defense search and navigation equipment Medical, measurement and control rRevised. Market Edited by Chelsey Drysdale Communications Gear on Rise LOS ALTOS, CA – Global communications equipment production is expected to rise 8.8% in 2008 and 10.1% in 2009, according to Henderson Ventures (hendersonventures.com). The research firm says sales will uptick following a 6% hike this year, which was down from 12.6% in 2006. Gradual leveling of the subscriber base will lower handset sales to growth rates around 10% through 2009, Henderson predicts. Separately, iSuppli Corp. (isuppli.com) said global shipments of mobile handsets equipped with GPS capability are expected to more than quadruple from 2006 to 2011 because of the U.S. government’s mandate for Emergency 911 capability, as well as wireless operators’ initiatives to offer location-based services. GPS-equipped mobile handset shipments will increase to 444 million units by 2011, rising from 109.6 million units in 2006. By 2011, 29.6% of all mobile phones shipped will have GPS capability, up from 11.1% in 2006, said the firm. 2.6 -27.3 7.2 4.2 1.0 13.4 -1.4 25.4 -1.9 2.9 2.3 1.7 0.7 30.8 0.2 -1.5 2.4 1.1 -2.3 -8.5 -0.4 -8.0 2.3 0.4 -2.8 3.2 -7.8 1.3 1.1 -6.0 -11.4 -16.3 1.2 1.8 -2.3 0.8 -0.3 -8.5 -11.8 2.7 -1.3 3.0 0.6 -5.2 4.8 20.1 4.3 3.5 *Preliminary. 1Includes semiconductors. Seasonally adjusted. Source: U.S. Department of Commerce Census Bureau, Nov. 2, 2007 Manufacturing Growth Slowing TEMPE, AZ – The slowdown in housing and other markets is starting to back up on manufacturing, according to the Institute for Supply Management (ism.ws). Manufacturing grew in October but at a slower rate, as the PMI registered 50.9%, down 110 basis points from September. A reading above 50% indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding. It was the ninth consecutive month manufacturing sector economic activity expanded, the trade group said. A PMI over 41.9%, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy. Therefore, the PMI indicates that both the overall economy and the manufacturing sector are still growing. “It does appear that the impact of the slow down in the financial, housing and transportation segments has spilled over into manufacturing,” said ISM spokesman Norbert J. Ore. IC Shipment Forecast Raised SCOTSDALE, AZ – Research firm IC Insights (icinsights.com) upped its 2007 forecast for IC unit shipments to 10%, some two points higher than the firm’s earlier estimate. Moreover, the firm believes there is a good chance unit demand will continue to increase at least 10% annually over the next five to 10 years, driven by communications and consumer electronics. The IC market has returned double-digit increases in shipments every year since 2002. June PMI New orders Production Inventories Customer inventories Backlogs 56.0 60.3 62.9 45.3 47.0 53.5 July 53.8 57.5 55.6 48.5 51.0 52.0 Aug. 52.9 55.3 56.1 45.4 49.0 50.5 Sept. 52.0 53.4 54.6 41.6 50.0 51.0 Oct. 50.9 52.5 49.6 47.2 54.0 46.0 Demand High for Large LCDs EL SEGUNDO, CA – Global third-quarter large-sized LCD panel revenue is expected to increase by more than 17% sequentially and 45% year-over-year, iSuppli says. Demand growth is expected to soften in the fourth quarter, with the market expected to hit 370 million units shipped by year-end. Source: Institute for Supply Management, Nov. 1, 2007 Industry Market Snapshot Book-to-bills of various components/equipment. May Semiconductor equipment1 Semiconductors2 Rigid PCBs3 (North America) Flexible PCBs3 (North America) Computers/electronic products4 Sources: 1SEMI, 2SIA Metals Index July 0.83 1.91% 1.02 1.04 5.08 Bureau, Aug. 0.82r 2.73%r 1.06 1.07 4.94r Sept. 0.81p 4.39%p 1.08 1.08 4.96p Date LME Cash Seller and Settlement for Tin LME Cash Seller and Settlement for Lead Handy and Harman Silver (COMEX Silver) LME Cash Seller and Settlement for Copper 8/6/07 $7.38 $1.54 $191.65 $3.54 Price Per Lb. 9/10/07 10/8/07 $6.37 $1.37 $186.09 $3.34 $7.12 $1.75 $193.85 $3.62 11/12/07 $7.64 $1.58 $215.79 $3.07 June 0.91 1.87% 1.01 1.12 4.83 3IPC , 4Census 0.98 2.5% 0.98 1.32 4.76 (3-month moving average growth), ppreliminary, rrevised 12 Circuits Assembly DECEMBER 2007 circuitsassembly.com http://hendersonventures.com http://isuppli.com http://ism.ws http://icinsights.com http://circuitsassembly.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Circuits Assembly - December 2007

Circuits Assembly - December 2007 Contents Caveat Lector Industry News Market Watch Talking Heads Global Sourcing Screen Printing Better Manufacturing Metalization Options for COB Assembly A Test Comparison of SAC and Non-SAC Pb-Free Solders An A-to-Z Guide to X-Ray Inspection BEST: A ‘Funky Chicken’ with an EMS Niche Tech Tips Wave Soldering Process Doctor Pb-Free Lessons Learned Getting Lean Eastern Approaches Product Spotlight Ad Index Assembly Insider Technical Abstracts

Circuits Assembly - December 2007

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