[ X ]ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2003

OR

[ ]TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from ______________________ to _________________________

Commission file number: 1-7201

A. Full title of the plan and the address of the plan, if different from that of the issuer named below:

B. Name of the issuer of the securities held pursuant to the plan and the address of its principal executive office:

*All other schedules required by Section 2520.103-10 of the Department of Labor's Rules and Regulations for Reporting and Disclosure under ERISA have been omitted because they are not applicable.

1

2

3

4

[Table of Contents]

AVX CORPORATION RETIREMENT PLAN
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
_________________________

The following description of the AVX Corporation Retirement Plan (the "Plan") is provided for general information purposes only. Participants should refer to the Plan documents for more complete information.

The AVX Corporation Retirement Plan is a defined contribution plan covering employees who have at least three months of service and are not hourly-paid employees or employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement (unless such agreement provides for participation in the Plan). The Plan includes a 401(k) feature to which employees can contribute, and AVX Corporation ("the Company") makes a matching contribution. The Plan also includes a discretionary contribution plan feature and a non-discretionary contribution plan feature to which participants are not required to contribute. The Plan is administered by the AVX Corporation Retirement Committee and is subject to the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA").

Upon retirement, total disablement or death, a participant or the participant's beneficiary is entitled to receive the value of the aggregate vested amount credited to the participant's account in a lump-sum payment or in installments over a period not to exceed the life expectancy of the participant or his beneficiaries. For the non-discretionary contribution portion of the account, payment of benefits is in monthly installments unless an alternate form of payment is elected. Upon the termination of employment of a participant other than by retirement, disability or death, such participant is entitled to the vested portion of his account. For the AVX Stock and Kyocera Stock Funds, a participant will receive either cash or whole shares of, an affiliate of the Company, Kyocera Corporation American Depository Shares ("Kyocera ADS") or whole shares of AVX Corporation Shares ("AVX Stock") with any partial shares being paid in cash.

Participants' loans are held in the Consolidated Loan Fund. With certain restrictions, participants may borrow up to a maximum of 50% of their vested account balance or $50,000, whichever is less, repayable within five years except for borrowing for the purchase of a primary residence which is repayable during a period up to ten years. These loans bear interest at a rate equal to the commercial loan rate for similar type loans prevailing at the time the loan is made.

All expenses that arise in connection with the administration of the Plan and the Seligman Master Trust ("the Trust") shall be paid out of the Trust Fund.

Participant Accounts:

Each participant's account is credited with the participant's contribution and allocations of the Company's contribution and Plan earnings and charged with an allocation of administrative expenses. Allocations are based on participant compensation or account balances, as defined in the plan document. The benefit to which a participant is entitled is the benefit that can be provided from the participant's vested account.

Amounts of employer contributions under the Plan which have been forfeited shall be used to 1) pay for Plan expenses and 2) to reduce future employer contributions. At December 31, 2002 and 2003, net forfeited non- vested accounts totaled $18,066 and $0, respectively. In 2003, employer contributions were not reduced by forfeitures.

5

[Table of Contents]

Basis of Accounting:

The financial statements of the Plan are prepared under the accrual method of accounting in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that may affect the reported amounts of certain assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingencies at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reporting year. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

6

[Table of Contents]

Contributions may be invested in cash or short-term investments in such amounts as the Trustee deems necessary for the operation of the Trust. Participants may change their investment elections monthly.

The market values of the following investments represent 5% or more of the Plan's total assets available for benefits for the years ended December 31, 2002 and 2003, respectively:

During 2003, the Plan's investments (including gains and losses on investments bought and sold, as well as held during the year) appreciated in value by $13,269,136 as follows:

Valuation of Investments:

Quoted market prices are used to value investments. Shares of mutual funds and the Seligman Master Trust are valued at the net asset value of shares held by the Plan at the end of the year. Participant loans are valued at their outstanding balances, which approximate fair value. Investments in securities (ADS, corporate bonds, corporate notes, common stocks and preferred stocks) traded on a national securities exchange are valued at quoted market prices at the end of each business day. Temporary cash investments are invested in the HSBC Short-term Temporary Investment Fund and are valued at quoted market prices.

Concentrations of credit risk with respect to investments are limited due to the large number of investments and their dispersion across many different industries and geographies. Investments are exposed to various risks, such as interest rate, market and credit. Due to the level of risk associated with certain investment securities and the level of uncertainty related to changes in the value of investment securities, it is at least reasonably possible that changes in risks in the near term would materially affect participants' account balances and the amounts reported in the statements of net assets available for plan benefits.

7

[Table of Contents]

Purchases and sales of securities are reflected on a trade-date basis and stated at market values based upon the closing sales prices on the last business day of the year as reported on the composite transaction tape. Dividend income is recorded on the ex-dividend date. Income from other investments is recorded as earned on an accrual basis.

The Plan presents in the statement of changes in net assets available for benefits the net appreciation (depreciation) in the fair value of its investments which consists of the realized gains (losses) and the unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on those investments.

For the Seligman Master Trust, the Plan's allocated participation, as well as the individual participants' balances comprising the Plan's participation in the Trust, is determined monthly by adding or deducting the Plan's contributions and benefit payments made into the Trust and a proportionate share of the other changes in the Trust's net assets (related principally to investment activities) based on the relative interest of the Plan's net assets to the Trust's net assets at the beginning of the plan year.

Contributions from the Company are at the discretion of the Company's Board of Directors. Total contributions credited to any participant's account are limited to the lesser of 25% of the participant's annual compensation as defined in the Plan's provisions, or $40,000 in accordance with Section 415 of the Internal Revenue Code. All contribution percentages are set in accordance with the Internal Revenue Code. For the 401(k) feature, participant contributions are limited to 1% to 25% of compensation.

Participants age 50 and older are eligible to make a catch up contribution of an additional $2,000 to the Plan once the participant meets the Maximum Elective Deferral Limit of $12,000 for the calendar year or once the plan deferral limit of 25% has been reached for the calendar year. The Company will match the first 3% of pre-tax pay an employee contributes to the 401(k) portion of the Retirement Plan dollar for dollar into the AVX Stock Fund, regardless of how the employee invests his contributions, except for hourly employees in Colorado Springs, Atlanta, Biddeford and Sun Valley.

Hourly employees of the Colorado Springs, Atlanta and Biddeford facilities may contribute 1% to 25% of their compensation. The Company shall make a non-elective contribution amount equal to 1% of the Colorado Springs facility members' compensation. The Company will not make a non-elective contribution to participants employed at the Atlanta and Biddeford facilities. The employer shall also contribute to the Plan an amount equal to 66 2/3% of the first 3% of each member's 401(k) Contribution.

[Table of Contents]

The following is a breakout reflecting Statements of Net Assets Available for Benefits by non-discretionary and 401(k) and discretionary Plan features.

The following is a breakout reflecting Statements of Changes in Net Assets Available for Benefits by non-discretionary and 401(k) and discretionary Plan features.

8. Interest In Master Trust (UNAUDITED):

The Plan's non-discretionary and 401(k) and discretionary contribution features' allocated share of the Seligman Master Trust net assets was approximately 27.4% and 58.0% at December 31, 2002 and 27.1% and 57.1% at December, 31, 2003, respectively.

At December 31, 2002 and 2003, the financial position of the Trust was as follows:

The change in Trust net assets for the year ended December 31, 2003 was as follows:

[Table of Contents]

* Denotes a party-in-interest.

17

[Table of Contents]

18