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To: ~digs who wrote (23)	4/24/2001 8:37:29 AM
From: 2MAR$	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 208838

North American Semiconductor Equipment Industry Posts March 2001 Book-to-Bill Ratio of 0.64 SAN JOSE, Calif., April 23, 2001 -- The North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.3 billion in orders in March 2001 and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.64, according to the April 2001 Express Report published today by Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI). A book-to-bill of 0.64 means that orders were 36 percent lower than shipments for the month. The three-month average of worldwide bookings in March 2001 was $1.31 billion. The bookings figure is 23 percent below the revised February 2001 level of $1.69 billion and 49 percent below the $2.55 billion in orders posted in March 2000. The three-month average of worldwide shipments in March 2001 was $2.04 billion. The shipments figure is 11 percent below the revised February 2001 level of $2.29 billion but is 17 percent above the March 2000 shipments level of $1.74 billion. "The March numbers reveal the continued erosion of bookings during the first quarter, which is not surprising given the continued softness in chip markets," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. "Some analysts believe that pricing pressures could come into play during the third quarter, leading chip makers to make so-called 'technology buys' as they seek to lower costs through improved productivity." The SEMI book-to-bill is a ratio of three-month moving average bookings to three-month moving average shipments for the North American semiconductor equipment industry. Shipments and bookings figures are in millions of U.S. dollars. The data contained in this release was compiled by the independent public accounting firm of Arthur Andersen LLP, without audit, from data submitted directly by the participants. SEMI and Arthur Andersen LLP can assume no responsibility for the accuracy of the underlying data. The data are contained in a monthly Express Report published by SEMI that tracks shipments and orders worldwide of North American-based manufacturers of equipment used to manufacture semiconductor devices, not shipments and orders of the chips themselves. The May 2001 Express Report is scheduled for publication on May 22, 2001 (subject to change). Based in San Jose, Calif., SEMI is an international trade association serving more than 2,400 companies participating in the semiconductor and flat panel display equipment and materials markets. SEMI maintains offices in Austin, Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Hsinchu, Moscow, Seoul, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit SEMI on the Internet at www.semi.org. MEDIA CONTACT: Michael Droeger/SEMI Ph: 408.943.6953 E-mail: mdroeger@semi.org INDUSTRY/IR CONTACT: Ms. Sandy Fowler/SEMI Ph: 408.943.6973 E-mail: sfowler@semi.org