After a brutal April, the May Electronic Component Sales Trends (ECST) survey from the Electronic Components Industry Association (ECIA) found that sales sentiment for electronic components stabilized slightly.
The index came in at 93.1 points in May, 9.4 points better than what was predicted in April. A sales sentiment score of 100 points or more represents growth.
ECIA said the moderating tariff environment helped to stabilize the index somewhat.
The winners during the month were electro-mechanical and passive components that wound up slightly below the 100-point threshold at 98.3 and 97.2, respectively. The June forecast for electro-mechanical and passive components is expected to drop slightly in June.
Semiconductors came in with a score of 84.0 but that was 7.3 points better than the April forecast ECIA said. Relative stability might be the best that can be hoped for given the June outlook will remain roughly at 94.0. However, ECIA forecasts a slight improvement in semiconductors to 92.0 in June.
Irrational exuberance
Manufacturers reported positive scores for May and forecasts for June in what ECIA called irrational exuberance.
This contrasts with distributors that are negative in their view of the sales environment. Meanwhile, manufacturers sustain a fairly positive view in May but join distributors in a negative view for June. Overall, the end-market index score continued to collapse in May but is expected to rebound to nearly 100 points in the June forecast.
ECIA said this inconsistency is puzzling.
About the ECIA ECST report
The ECST survey provides highly valuable and detailed visibility on industry expectations in the near-term through the monthly and quarterly surveys. This “immediate” perspective is helpful to participants up and down the electronics components supply chain. In the long-term, ECIA shares in the optimism for the future as the continued introduction and market adoption of exciting innovative technologies should motivate both corporate and consumer demand for next-generation products over the long term.
The complete ECIA ECST report is delivered to all ECIA members as well as others who participate in the survey. All participants in the electronics components supply chain are invited and encouraged to participate in the report so they can see the highly valuable insights provided by the ECST report.
The monthly and quarterly ECST reports present data in detailed tables and figures with multiple perspectives and covering current sales expectations, sales outlooks, product cancellations, product decommits and product lead times. The data is presented at a detailed level for six major electronic component categories, six semiconductor subcategories and eight end markets. Also, survey results are segmented by aggregated responses from manufacturers, distributors and manufacturer representatives.
Interested in reading the entire ECST report? Click here for more information.
