North American PCB Shipments Jump 23.5% in August, Extending Strong 2026 Growth

<span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">North American PCB Shipments Jump 23.5% in August, Extending Strong 2026 Growth</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span> 431279_sandyge… </span> </span> <span><time datetime="2026-09-30T15:37:37-05:00" title="Wednesday, September 30, 2026 - 15:37 CDT" class="datetime">Sep 30, 2026</time> </span> <div class="field field--name-field-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2026-09-30T12:00:00Z" class="datetime">Sep 30, 2026</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-text field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">The Global Electronics Association releases PCB industry results for August 2026</div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The G<span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">lo</span>bal Electronics Association announced today the August 2026 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.29.</p><p>Total North American PCB shipments in&nbsp;August 2026were up 23.5% compared to the same&nbsp;month last year. Compared to the preceding month, August shipments were up 5.2%. August’s year-to-date (YTD) shipments increased by 15.5% year-over-year (YOY).</p><p>PCB bookings in August were down 35.0% compared to the same month last year. August bookings were down 78.1% compared to the preceding month. August’s YTD bookings increased 38.7% compared to the same period last year.</p><p>“PCB shipments continued to strengthen in August, though the month also brought a pullback in new orders following July’s surge. The results this month likely represent a quick pause after several months of strong order flow,” said Dr. Shawn DuBravac, the Global Electronics Association’s chief economist.&nbsp;</p><table class="table" style="border-collapse:collapse;border-style:none;margin-left:4.5pt;" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td style="border-color:windowtext;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:top;width:121px;" width="121"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>3-Month Book-to-Bill</u></strong></span></p></td><td style="border-bottom-style:solid;border-color:windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right-style:solid;border-top-style:solid;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:top;width:121px;" width="121"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>1-Month Book-to-Bill</u></strong></span></p></td><td style="border-bottom-style:solid;border-color:windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right-style:solid;border-top-style:solid;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:top;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>Shipments 3-Month MA</u></strong></span></p></td><td style="border-bottom-style:solid;border-color:windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right-style:solid;border-top-style:solid;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:top;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>Bookings</u></strong></span></p><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>3-Month MA</u></strong></span></p></td><td style="border-bottom-style:solid;border-color:windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right-style:solid;border-top-style:solid;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:top;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>Shipments YTD</u></strong></span></p></td><td style="border-bottom-style:solid;border-color:windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right-style:solid;border-top-style:solid;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:top;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;"><strong><u>Bookings YTD</u></strong></span></p></td></tr><tr style="height:8.5pt;"><td style="border-bottom-style:solid;border-color:windowtext;border-left-style:solid;border-right-style:solid;border-top-style:none;height:11px;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:bottom;width:121px;" width="121"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="color:black;font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">1.29</span></p></td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid windowtext;border-top-style:none;height:11px;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:bottom;width:121px;" width="121"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">.45</span></p></td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid windowtext;border-top-style:none;height:11px;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:bottom;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="color:black;font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">3.5%</span></p></td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid windowtext;border-top-style:none;height:11px;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:bottom;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="color:black;font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">-23.19%</span></p></td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid windowtext;border-top-style:none;height:11px;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:bottom;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="color:black;font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">15.5%</span></p></td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid windowtext;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid windowtext;border-top-style:none;height:11px;padding:0px 7px;vertical-align:bottom;width:103px;" width="103"><p class="text-align-center" style="line-height:200%;"><span style="color:black;font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">38.7%</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>Detailed Data Available</strong></p><p>Companies that participate in the Global Electronics Association’s North American PCB Statistical Program have access to detailed findings on rigid PCB and flexible circuit sales and orders, including separate rigid and flex book-to-bill ratios, growth trends by product types and company size tiers, demand for prototypes, sales growth to military and medical markets, and other timely data.</p><p><strong>Interpreting the Data</strong></p><p>The book-to-bill ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in the Global Electronics Association’s survey sample.&nbsp;A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to 12 months. A ratio of less than 1.00 indicates the reverse.</p><p>Year-on-year and year-to-date growth rates provide the most meaningful view of industry growth. Month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they reflect seasonal effects and short-term volatility. Because bookings tend to be more volatile than shipments, changes in the book-to-bill ratios from month to month might not be significant unless a trend of more than three consecutive months is apparent. It is also important to consider changes in both bookings and shipments to understand what is driving changes in the book-to-bill ratio.</p><p>The Global Electronics Association’s monthly PCB industry statistics are based on data provided by a representative sample of both rigid PCB and flexible circuit manufacturers selling in the USA and Canada. The Association publishes the PCB boo<span style="font-family:&quot;Arial&quot;,sans-serif;font-size:11.0pt;line-height:200%;">k-</span>to-bill ratio by the end of each month.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-terms-reference field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item content-tag content-tag--industry-intelligence"><a href="https://www.electronics.org/primary-categories/industry-intelligence" hreflang="en">Industry Intelligence</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-terms-reference-2 field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item content-tag content-tag--pcb-book-to-bill-ratio"><a href="https://www.electronics.org/secondary-categories/pcb-book-bill-ratio" hreflang="en">PCB Book-To-Bill Ratio</a></div> <div class="field__item content-tag content-tag--ems-and-pcb-statistical-programs"><a href="https://www.electronics.org/secondary-categories/ems-and-pcb-statistical-programs" hreflang="en">EMS and PCB statistical programs</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-list-image field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">List Image</div> <div class="field__item">PCB Design Background (1).jpg</div> </div> <drupal-render-placeholder callback="flag.link_builder:build" arguments="0=node&amp;1=7815&amp;2=bookmark_to_favorites" token="y_IsOYkAxcKoQaNR0Z-tZtWs-2Dj1GctP7YTs_bErBM"></drupal-render-placeholder>

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Global Electronics Association (formerly IPC) - news and market reports RSS · Trade Publication

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30th September 2026

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