2006 finished on a high note. Electronic equipment sales rose 8% in 4Q’06 vs. 4Q’05 based upon composite financials of a broad range of multinational companies. And the inventory buildup trend that was worrisome in the third quarter changed direction in Q4 as the entire supply chain reported lower stock levels vs. sales.

2007 is expected to be a year of slower growth as higher interest rates throttle the global economic expansion. After a decent December ‘06, world electronics demand dropped noticeably early this year. In the USA electronic equipment orders contracted in January as demand for most equipment types (including military gear) nosedived. Europe also reported a recent end-market slowdown and Taiwan/China really ‘hit the skids.’ A combination of a Chinese New Year-driven business hiatus, normal seasonality and moderating end-market demand caused Taiwan-listed ODMs to report sharply lower February sales. Read the full column (PDF)...

This article was taken from Global SMT & Packaging Vol. 7 No. 4 - April 2007