Economy

PMA Expects Strong Business Conditions for Next 3 Months

March 30, 2017

The Precision Metalforming Association released its March Business Conditions Report and found that members continue to be optimistic about future business conditions.

A survey of 119 metalforming companies in the U.S. and Canada revealed that members expect steady orders and strong economic activity in the next three months.

Current average daily shipping levels jumped in March with 53 percent of members surveyed saying levels are higher compared to 38 percent in February.

Nine percent of companies reported workers on short time or layoff in March, compared to 10 percent in February and 17 percent in March 2016.

“PMA members continued to report higher expectations for general business conditions and specifically for increased orders in March, along with a strong uptick in orders shipped – up 15 percent vs. the February report, reflecting strong movement from “same” to “up,” said William E. Gaskin, PMA president. “The increase in orders was stronger than the 5.7 percent jump in orders reported by the March Institute for Supply Management (ISM) report, and mirrors the general sentiment for the manufacturing segment. Underlying growth in consumer spending, GDP growth and other key economic indicators reported by the Federal Reserve are lagging those of the metalforming sector.”