US manufacturing is on a roll. Recent employment figures show a vitality in US manufacturing that's been sorely lacking for years. Adding to the good news, Gardner Business Media (GBM - www.gardnerweb.com) recently released its latest durable goods numbers for US manufacturing. And they're spectacular. According to GBM, its durable goods index broke several records - highest ever, up year-over-year 3.3%, fastest growth since 2014, and growth of over 2% in 5 of the last 6 months. Why is this good news for US manufacturing? Durable goods manufacturing - that is, products that are not made for immediate consumption - acts as an important leading indicator for many entities and elements within our industry. Cutting tools. Capital equipment. Machine tools. Custom manufactured parts. Logistics. Metals and materials providers. Contract manufacturers. According to the GBM manufacturing economics team (see below): "The durable goods industrial production index was 108.7 in February 2018, which was the highest level ever. This means that the U.S. produced more durable goods in the month of February than it has in any other single month in its history. February's index increased 3.3 percent compared with one year ago. This was the fastest rate of growth since July 2014 and the fifth time in six months of faster than 2.0 percent growth. The annual rate of growth has been accelerating since January 2017. Accelerating growth in real durable goods new orders is pointing to even faster growth in durable goods production.We track industrial production and its leading indicators for several industries." Accelerating Growth: appliances, construction materials, custom processors, durable goods, electronics/computers/telecommunications, food/beverage, forming/fabricating (non-auto), hardware, industrial motors/hydraulics/mechanical components, machinery/equipment, metalcutting job shops, military, off-road/construction machinery, oil/gas-field/mining machinery, petrochemical processors, plastic/rubber products, power generation, ship/boat building Decelerating Growth: HVAC, primary metals, pumps/valves/plumbing, wood/paperAccelerating Contraction: furniture, medical, printingDecelerating Contraction: aerospace, automotive, textiles/clothing/leather goods Custom parts manufacturers and buyers within the above industries should take note, and plan accordingly for the remainder of 2018 and into 2019. Tag:Manufacturing
