KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 23): North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted US$2.27 billion in billings worldwide in July 2017, according to the U.S.-based Semiconductor Equipment & Materials International’s (SEMI) July Equipment Market Data Subscription (EMDS) Billings Report.

In a statement on its website yesterday, SEMI reported that the three-month average of worldwide billings of North American equipment manufacturers in July 2017 was US$2.27 billion.

It said the billings figure is 1.4% lower than the final June 2017 level of US$2.30 billion, and is 32.8% higher than the July 2016 billings level of US$1.71 billion.

SEMI president and CEO Ajit Manocha said he observed softening in the equipment billings in July following the strong surge in the first half of the year.

“However, overall, equipment billings remain significantly up year-over-year, with 2017 on-track to be a record spending year."