The ratio turned negative in November at 0.91 after being 1.05 in September, 1.03 in August, 1.05 in July and 1.0 in June.

November bookings were $1.55 billion – 4% up on October’s $1.49 billion, and 25.1% higher than the $1.24 billion of November 2015.

November billings were $1.61 billion – 1.1% lower than October’s $1.63 billion, and 25.2% higher than the $1.29 billion of November 2015.

“As 2016 comes towards a close, equipment spending is stronger than expected at the start of the year,” says SEMI’s Dan Tracy, “spending has been driven by 3D NAND, leading-edge foundry, and advanced packaging investments, and these segments are key for the expected spending growth in 2017.”