Editor’s Note: This is the first of two articles examining the impact of tariffs — positive and negative–on the electronics industry. It feels like the U.S.-China tariff-and-trade war has been waging so long we’ve forgotten how it started, but its goals remain the same. The Trump administration is pressuring China to change its behavior toward…
Anyone familiar with Foxconn/Hon Hai Precision Industry retained a healthy dose of skepticism when Foxconn announced it would build advanced liquid-crystal displays (LCDs) in Wisconsin. To put it charitably, Foxconn is not renowned for honoring its contracts. More than 20 years ago, when I was working for Electronic Business magazine, one of our editors spent…
The nation’s manufacturing sector regained some lost ground in January as demand, production and consumption all increased from December, the Institute for Supply Management reported. At the close of 2018, the ISM’s factory index, the PMI, dropped by a precipitous 5.4 percent to 54.3. January’s PMI inched up 2.3 percentage points to 56.6. Any number…
The electronics industry has developed some of the most ground-breaking technologies in human history. Yet, the best minds in high-tech have been unable to overcome one of the industry’s most insidious challenges: counterfeit electronics. To some extent, technology advancements have only added to the problem: electronic components can now be cloned so well that they…
U.S. manufacturing continued to grow in December, but much more slowly than in previous months, according to the Institute for Supply Management. Headwinds included a strong U.S. dollar; trade disputes; dysfunction in Washington, DC, and higher interest rates. Tailwinds included the strength in reshored manufacturing jobs for the last several years. For example, manufacturing jobs via…
The Institute for Supply Management made headlines last week as it announced its leading index for U.S. factory activity, the PMI, dropped in December by more than 5 points. The decline was sharp enough to move the Dow Jones Industrial Average for several days. Depending on your source material, this was the worst drop since…
U.S. factory activity in December plunged to a four-year low as new orders, production and employment declined sharply from November 2018 levels. Even the electronics industry, which struggled to meet component demand for the entirety of last year, abruptly hit the brakes. “Growth appears to have stopped,” a computer and electronics executive told the Institute for…
Mouser Electronics Inc. — on the tail of an announced warehouse expansion — reported that by the end of 2018 it expects to grow by almost 50 percent in Europe, from $1.34 billion to an estimated $1.87 billion, with a customer increase in excess of 18 percent. Mouser executives attribute the growth to targeted customer promotions supported by…
TTI, Inc., a leading specialty distributor of electronic components stocks a complete line of Amphenol SV SMPM Connectors for high density, high-frequency applications. Offering microwave performance through 65 GHz and less than .140-inch center-to-center spacing, the connectors are ideal when minimum board separation width is needed. SMPM Connectors are available in multiple configurations to accommodate…
U.S. purchasing and supply executives are entering 2019 with a bit less enthusiasm than 2018, although optimism remains strong for the next calendar year. Sixty-four percent of U.S. manufacturers polled by the Institute for Supply Management expect their revenue will grow by 5.7 percent in 2019, compared with the 5.1 percent increase predicted for 2018.…