PMA releases October 2007 Business Conditions Report.
Press Release Summary:
According to the October 2007 PMA Business Conditions Report, metalforming companies expect a slight dip in business conditions during the next 3 months. Current average daily shipping levels compared to the past 3 months remained steady in October, but companies expect incoming orders to decrease slightly during the next 3 months. Also, the number of metalforming companies with a portion of their workforce on short time or layoff fell to 8%.
Original Press Release:
Business Conditions Report: October 2007
CLEVELAND, OH - October 16, 2007 - According to the October 2007 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report, metalforming companies expect a slight dip in business conditions during the next three months. However, the number of companies with a portion of their workforce on short time or layoff decreased significantly in October. Conducted monthly, the report is an economic indicator for manufacturing, sampling 159 metalforming companies in the United States and Canada.
"PMA members are considerably more positive today than they were one year ago, as reported in our October 2006 Business Conditions Report," observed William E. Gaskin, PMA president. "While expectations for current shipments are only modestly improved over one year ago, expectations for new orders over the next few months and the overall assessment of the general economy are substantially more positive than last year," he continued.
When asked what they expect the trend in general economic activity to be over the next three months, 24% of participants reported that conditions will improve (down from 28% in September), 53% predict activity will remain the same (the same percentage reported the previous month) and 23% anticipate a decline in business conditions (up from 19% in September).
Metalforming companies expect incoming orders to decrease slightly during the next three months. Thirty-four percent of respondents anticipate an increase in orders (down from 36% in September), 41% expect no change (compared to 44% last month) and 25% forecast a decrease in orders (up from 20% in September).
Current average daily shipping levels compared to the past three months remained steady in October. Twenty-seven percent of companies reported that shipping levels are above levels of three months ago (compared to 32% in September), 44% reported no change (up from 39% in September) and 29% reported that October shipping levels are below levels of three months ago (the same percentage reported in September).
The number of metalforming companies with a portion of their workforce on short time or layoff fell to eight percent in October, down from 11% in September and at the lowest level since April 2006.
The monthly Business Conditions Report has been conducted by PMA since 1979. Full report results are available at pma.org/about/stats/BCreport. PMA is the full-service trade association representing the $91-billion metalforming industry of North America-the industry that creates precision metal products using stamping, fabricating and other value-added processes. Its nearly 1200 member companies include metal stampers, fabricators, spinners, slide formers and roll formers as well as suppliers of equipment, materials and services to the industry. Members are located in 30 countries, with the majority found in North America-in 41 states of the United States as well as Canada and Mexico.
Contact:
Christie Carmigiano
Government, Safety & Public Affairs Manager
Precision Metalforming Association
Phone: 216/901-8800
Fax: 216/901-9190
E-mail: ccarmigiano@pma.org
Web site: www.pma.org
