April 2013 Business Conditions Report shows dip in manufacturing.
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Press Release Summary:
PMA's April 2013 Business Conditions Report shows 16% of 136 participating metalforming companies expect decline in economic activity over next 3 months. Also, 21% of participants predict decrease in orders, while 22% reported decreased average daily shipping levels in April; 44% said shipping was same as 3 months ago. Up from March 2013 and April 2012, 14% of companies reported employees on short time or layoff.
Original Press Release:
Business Conditions Report: April 2013
CLEVELAND, OH — According to the April 2013 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report, metalforming companies expect a decline in business conditions during the next three months. Conducted monthly, the report is an economic indicator for manufacturing, sampling 136 metalforming companies in the United States and Canada.
The April report shows that only 28% of participants predict that economic activity will improve during the next three months (down from 36% in March), 56% believe that activity will remain unchanged (down from 58% last month) and 16% anticipate that activity will decline (up from just 6% in March).
Metalforming companies expect a dip in incoming orders during the next three months, with 37% forecasting an increase in orders (down from 46% in March), 42% expecting no change (compared to 43% last month) and 21% predicting a decrease in orders (up from 11% in March).
Average daily shipping levels also declined in April. Thirty-four percent of participants report that shipping levels are above levels of three months ago (down from 42% in March), 44% report that shipping levels are the same as three months ago (compared to 42% in March), and 22% report a decrease in shipping levels (down from 16% in March).
The percentage of metalforming companies with a portion of their workforce on short time or layoff increased to 14% in April, up from 11% in March. The April figure is higher than it was one year ago when only 9% of metalformers reported workers on short time or layoff.Â
"While fabricated metal products was one of the 12 economic sectors that continued to show growth in the March ISM Manufacturing Index, PMA members reflect a less robust outlook for the second quarter of 2013," said William E. Gaskin, PMA president. "In spite of firming March housing starts (in excess of 1.1 million, the highest level since June 2008) and continued solid performance of the automotive sector, expectations for soft orders and shipments persisted in PMA's April Business Conditions Report."
The monthly Business Conditions Report has been conducted by PMA since 1979. Full report results are available at http://www.pma.org/public/business_reports/pdf/BCREP.pdf. PMA is the full-service trade association representing the $113-billion metalforming industry of North America—the industry that creates precision metal products using stamping, fabricating, spinning, slide forming and roll forming technologies, and other value-added processes. Its nearly 900 member companies also include suppliers of equipment, materials and services to the industry. PMA leads innovative member companies toward superior competitiveness and profitability through advocacy, networking, statistics, the PMA Educational Foundation, FABTECH and METALFORM tradeshows, and MetalForming and Fabricating Product News magazines.
Contact:
Christie Carmigiano
Precision Metalforming Association
216-901-8800 ext. 2110
ccarmigiano@pma.org
