German distributors post record Q1 sales

The top performer among the product segments is electromechanical products, which soared by almost 13% to 91m euros, followed by passive components, which rose 7.5% to reach 122mn euros. Semiconductors climbed 5.9% to 635m euros. Power supplies also recorded double-digit growth of 12.2% to reach 25m euros. Displays and sensors performed less well, with both items recording falls in the double-digit range.

The breakdown of component types remained largely unchanged with semiconductors accounting for 70%, passive 13%, electromechanics 10%, power supplies 3%, and the remainder spread across other components and assemblies.

FBDi Chairman of the Board Georg Steinberger remarked: "This is a strong start that is set to improve further thanks to the excellent order situation. The overall position of the German high-tech industry is even better since its electronics manufacturing activities are focused to a large extent in lower-cost regions of Eastern Europe. Perceived growth among customers in the first quarter is leaning more toward double-digits.”

Naturally, there are ongoing risks, Steinberger added: "We suspect that increasing delivery times in the semiconductor industry and the generally high workload at factories is leading to duplicate bookings. The year 2017 will also continue to be dominated by price increases by the manufacturers. The fact that more and more semiconductor components are single-source products is significantly restricting customer choice and therefore the potential for negotiation. Many manufacturers are also constricting their sales channels or attempting to supply typical distribution customers themselves – a move that will not necessarily lead to a more customer-friendly service."

In addition, policies and their product-relevant decisions and directives are likely to cause rather more substantial difficulties in 2017. Steinberger observed: "As if the administrative burden posed by RoHS, WEEE or conflict minerals were not already significant enough, the FBDi believes that the amendment to the Chemicals Regulation by the EU Commission and ECHA (European Chemicals Agency) will result in a complete disaster and will impose a duty of disclosure on the entire electronics industry, that merely represents the collateral damage of the Chemicals Regulation. Simply put - it is impossible to trace and administer information across hundreds of substances and millions of different products, extending all the way down to the materials chips and capacitors are made of. Even installing a chemical laboratory in every logistics centre would not solve the problem."