Product Demand Remains Steady This Month, with Costs Continuing to Improve

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With no major trend shifts over the last month, electronics industry sentiment was relatively unchanged from September. Product demand has held steady, with costs continuing to improve per IPC’s October 2023 Global Sentiment of the Electronics Supply Chain Report.

“In this month’s survey, we asked a special question about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in electronics manufacturing,” noted Shawn DuBravac IPC chief economist. “Survey respondents indicated that AI is expected to be most useful for predictive maintenance, inventory management, quality control, supply chain management, and office support/activities over the next three years. However, fewer respondents believed AI would be useful for product development, lights-out facilities and sustainability.”

Additional survey data show:

• The New Order Index slipped one point, falling to 100. This is the lowest level for this index since data collection began. The index remains out of negative territory, but a further decline could be imminent.
• Both the Material Costs Index and the Labor Costs Index fell two points this month. This is a new low for the material costs measure.
• Over the next six months, electronics manufacturers expect to see continued, albeit relatively stable, increase in both labor and material costs.
• While profit margins are expected to improve, backlogs and ease of recruitment are likely to remain challenging.
• Backlogs are expected to rise more so among firms primarily operating in APAC, North America, and globally when compared to firms in Europe.

For the report, IPC surveyed hundreds of companies from around the world, including a wide range of company sizes representing the full electronics manufacturing value chain.