Semiconductor orders rose slightly in September.

Small increases in both sales and orders led to a rise in the semiconductor industry’s book-to-bill ratio during September, the Semiconductor Industry Assn. reported. The ratio, a key measure of the industry’s health, rose to 0.76 for September, the trade group reported, up from 0.74 in the month before. Both figures are still preliminary. The book-to-bill ratio compares new orders to shipments. In September, for example, the ratio indicates that semiconductor makers received $76 worth of new orders for each $100 worth of silicon chips shipped. Semiconductor makers from the United States, Europe and Japan are included in the statistics.