It's no secret that it has been a buyers' market for about two years. The good news for electronics buyers is that while unit shipments of electronic components is increasing month to month, there is little chance of any shortages any time soon.

Many distributors attending the recent National Electronic Distributor Association Executive Conference say that while shipments are increasing, their revenue is flat to falling. Prices are declining because inventory levels remains high in the supply chain.

However, even if inventory levels disappear over night, there is little chance of shortages for the foreseeable future because of excess and unused capacity. If unit demand continues to increase at a steady pace, unused capacity can be brought back on line. In addition there is little chance that demand will increase dramatically over the next 12 months. Telecommunications is expected to remain soft and computer shipments will be solid, but not stellar.

jcarbone@reedbusiness.com