May 2008

The February preliminary estimate was revised upward $0.9 billion or 0.2 percent.
 
March sales of durable goods were up 2.3 percent from last month and were up 4.8 percent from a year ago. Compared to last month, motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies were up 4.5 percent and sales of metals and minerals, except petroleum, were up 3.5 percent. Sales of nondurable goods were up 1.0 percent from last month and were up 20.1 percent from last year.
 
Sales of farm product raw materials were up 9.4 percent from last month and sales of beer, wine, and distilled alcoholic beverages were up 2.7 percent.
 
Inventories. Total inventories of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal …

Economic growth in the U.S. is sustainable throughout the remainder of 2008, say the nation’s purchasing and supply executives in their spring 2008 Semiannual Economic Forecast. These projections are part of the forecast issued by the Business Survey Committee of the Institute for Supply Management.
 
Overview
Manufacturing Growth Marginal in 2008
Revenue to Increase 1%
Capital Investment to Increase 1%
Capacity Utilization at 78.6%
Non-Manufacturing Growth Sustainable in 2008
Revenue to Increase 2.7%
Capital Investment to Decrease 2.7%
Capacity Utilization at 85.9%
 
Manufacturing Summary
While 42 percent of respondents predict revenues to be 9.2 percent greater in 2008 than in 2007, the overall expected …

In a recent survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the majority of U.S.-based industrial manufacturers said they are pessimistic about the prospects for the U.S. economy over the next 12 months, and most of the others said they are uncertain. Only 12% remain optimistic. Their overall uncertainty now includes the world economy where 21% say they are pessimistic and 41% say they are uncertain about the next 12 months.
 
Overall, U.S.-based industrial manufacturers will be readjusting to a slower-paced domestic economy for most of 2008, but with the continued strength of international sales, an uptick is anticipated as they move into the first months of 2009.
 
Key findings:
Optimism drops dramatically. Those optimistic about the 12-month outlook for the U.S. …