Manufacturing technology consumption up 17.2 percent year-to-date

July 14, 2008

May U.S. manufacturing technology consumption totaled $341.21 million, according to AMTDA, the American Machine Tool Distributors’ Association (www.amtda.org), and AMT - The Association For Manufacturing Technology (www.amtonline.org). This total, as reported by companies participating in the USMTC program, was down 16.4 percent from April, but up 2.2 percent from the total of $333.80 million reported for May 2007. With a year-to-date total of $1,942.37 million, 2008 is up 17.2 percent compared with 2007.

These numbers and all data in this report are based on the totals of actual data reported by companies participating in the United States Manufacturing Technology Consumption (USMTC) program.

“The May machine tool consumption numbers again demonstrated continued strength and growth in many markets across the country, except in the automotive sector in the upper Midwest,” Peter Borden, AMTDA president said. “However, the concerns about energy and commodity prices, along with the traditional summer and pre-IMTS buying slowness, may in the next few months reduce the gains that we have seen thus far this year to bring the orders closer to the forecasts.”

The (USMTC) report, jointly compiled by the two trade associations representing the production and distribution of manufacturing technology, provides regional and national U.S. consumption data of domestic and imported machine tools and related equipment. Analysis of manufacturing technology consumption provides a reliable leading economic indicator as manufacturing industries invest in capital metalworking equipment to increase capacity and improve productivity.

U.S. manufacturing technology consumption is also reported on a regional basis for five geographic breakdowns of the United States.

Northeast Region
Northeast Region manufacturing technology consumption in May rose to $48.48 million, 4.7 percent higher than April’s $46.30 million, but 16.0 percent less than the total for May 2007. The year-to-date total of $269.89 million is off 0.1 percent when compared with 2007 at the same time.

Southern Region
May manufacturing technology consumption in the Southern Region stood at $43.47 million, down 11.6 percent when compared with April’s $49.17 million, and 19.0 percent less than the May total a year ago. The $314.75 million year-to-date total is 47.2 percent higher than the 2007 total at the same time.

Midwestern Region
At $119.31 million, May manufacturing technology consumption in the Midwestern Region was 26.2 percent less than the April total of $161.76 million but 20.8 percent higher than the May 2007 tally. Compared with 2007 at the same time, the year-to-date total of $662.98 million is up 42.6 percent.

Central Region
Central Region manufacturing technology consumption rose to $91.15 million in May, up 7.5 percent when compared with April’s $84.79 million, and 3.4 percent higher than the total for last May. The 2008 year-to-date total of $447.29 million is 2.9 percent less than the comparable figure a year ago.

Western Region
With a May total of $38.78 million, Western Region manufacturing technology consumption was 41.5 percent less than April’s $66.25 million but up 9.2 percent when compared with May a year ago. The $247.47 million year-to-date total is down 0.2 percent when compared with 2007 at the same time.