The US Semiconductor Industry Association’s book-to-bill ratio jumped to 1.22 for May, the highest for nearly a decade, against a revised 1.17 for April. The figure resulted from a whopping $4,300m in new orders, over double the typical level only a couple of years ago. May orders were 53.6% higher than those for May 1994, and up 5.7% on the April figure. Sales rose 37.8% on May 1994 at $3,540m, and up 2% on the April figure. Analysts were wrong-footed, having widely forecast a 1.18 figure.Analysts warned that buyers were likely double-ordering parts in the face of severe shortages.
