SOUTH PORTLAND (Dow Jones/AP) – Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc. (FCS) reaffirmed its guidance for a 4 percent to 6 percent sequential decline in third-quarter revenue, but said order rates and backlog improved over July and August, typically the slowest months of the quarter.

In a press release Wednesday, the semiconductor maker said orders for cell phones, computing, displays, power supplies, and consumer products like DVDs have been strong so far this quarter. The company noted third-quarter-to-date orders for cell phones were greater than total bookings for either the first or second quarters this year, and orders for desktop computing and displays running ahead of first-half run rates.

Fairchild’s July forecast for the third quarter suggested revenue between $326.3 million and $333.2 million, well below 2002 third-quarter revenue of $360.6 million. Wall Street currently sees third-quarter revenue of about $331.3 million, according to a mean estimate compiled by Thomson First Call. In July, the consensus estimate was $364.4 million.

The company attributed its third-quarter outlook to a SARS-related inventory buildup at its Asian distributors and a 10 percent-plus drop in backlog going into the quarter.

Distributor inventory levels have improved due to stronger resales, and their supply on hand is now tracking toward the company’s 13 week target level, Fairchild said Wednesday.

The company is set to report third-quarter financial results Oct. 16.

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On the Net:

http://www.fairchildsemi.com

AP-ES-09-03-03 0906EDT