The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) today announced worldwide sales of semiconductors reached $31.0 billion for the month of November 2016, an increase of 7.4 percent compared to the November 2015 total of $28.9 billion and 2.0 percent more than the October 2016 total of 30.4 billion. November marked the market’s largest year-to-year growth since January 2015. All monthly sales numbers are compiled by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization and represent a three-month moving average.

“Global semiconductor sales continued to pick up steam in November, increasing at the highest rate in almost two years and nearly pulling even with the year-to-date total from the same point in 2015,” said John Neuffer, president and CEO, Semiconductor Industry Association. “The Chinese market continues to stand out, growing nearly 16 percent year-to-year to lead all regional markets. As 2016 draws to a close, the global semiconductor market appears likely to roughly match annual sales from 2015 and is well-positioned for a solid start to 2017.”

Month-to-month sales increased modestly across all regions: the Americas (3.3 percent), China (2.7 percent), Europe (2.5 percent), Asia Pacific/All Other (0.7 percent), and Japan (0.4 percent). Year-to-year sales increased in China (15.8 percent), Japan (8.2 percent), Asia Pacific/All Other (4.8 percent), and the Americas (3.2 percent), but fell slightly in Europe (-1.6 percent).