The Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International book-to-bill ratio, which gauges demand for chip-equipment tools made in the US, was little changed at 0.61 in August.
A ratio of 0.61 means that US semiconductor-equipment makers took US$61 of orders for every US$100 of shipments. A ratio below 1 indicates a contracting market. August's ratio was little changed from the revised 0.63 ratio in July.
Spending on computers and related gear has fallen this year amid a slowing economy, hurting sales of semiconductors and the equipment used to make them. Analysts expect the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon last week will further crimp spending as companies face concerns about continued economic and political instability.
"The effects of recent current events and wavering consumer confidence and spending could further exacerbate the already tenuous situation in regard to chip demand and capacity," Stan Myers, president of the San Jose, California-based trade group, said in a statement.
Sales last month were little changed at US$1.207 billion from a revised US$1.21 billion in July. They were 50 percent below year-earlier shipments of US$2.4 billion.
Applied Materials Inc, Lam Research Corp, Novellus Systems Inc and KLA-Tencor Corp are the biggest US makers of tools used to manufacture chips. Teradyne Inc is the biggest maker of semiconductor-testing equipment.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
Taiwan’s exports soared to an all-time high of US$61.8 billion last month, surging 49.7 percent from a year earlier, as the global frenzy for artificial intelligence (AI) applications and new consumer electronics powered shipments of high-tech goods, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. It was the first time exports had exceeded the US$60 billion mark, fueled by the global boom in AI development that has significantly boosted Taiwanese companies across the international supply chain, Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) told a media briefing. “There is a consensus among major AI players that the upcycle is still in its early stage,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
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