As the computer industry awaits today’s release of the July chip book-to-bill ratio, chip makers and computer manufacturers are complaining that the statistic – which plummeted this year – is a poor market indicator. Chip giant Intel told Computergram recently the US Semiconductor Industry Association’s (SIA) book-to-bill ratio was annoying because it included chips used in other industries, such as automotive, and therefore wasn’t a specific enough computer market indicator. Other companies, such as Texas Instruments Inc, called the figures worthless, according to US reports. The US firms’ complaints may stem from the fact the low figures have affected the stock market this year. As the SIA said, the plunging figures seemed to exacerbate the negative and have led to big tech stock sell-offs. The ratio has been below 1.0 since the start of the year (CI No 2,953) and fell to 0.79 in March – the lowest since the SIA began keeping track in 1987. A ratio of 1.0 means that for every $1 in chips shipped, new orders worth $1 were received. The July book-to-bill ratio is expected to be announced after the market closes today Thursday.
