TECHNOLOGY - April 10, 1992

Chip Orders Surge: Orders for U.S. semiconductors surged to a record level in March, fueled by an improving economy. March orders were $1.53 billion, up 3.4% from February’s $1.48 billion and 10.5% higher than the $1.38 billion of a year ago. However, shipments also jumped. So the industry’s key barometer of future growth, the book-to-bill ratio of orders to shipments, fell slightly in March to 1.08 from 1.11 in February. A ratio of 1.08 means that $108 of orders were received for every $100 of shipments. A ratio above 1 to 1 indicates that the industry is growing.