Orders for semiconductors improved again in April.

The Semiconductor Industry Assn. said its ratio of orders to shipments increased to 1.15 to 1 for the month, a slight improvement from the revised March index of 1.13. The ratio means that for every $100 worth of product shipped in April, manufacturers received $115 worth of new orders. In the U.S. market, average monthly orders for the three-month period ending in April were $814.7 million, up 8.9% from March and the highest level since the third quarter of 1984. However, at $690.6 million, April shipments were down 13% from March.