2008

Currency exchange rate pressures lead to an increase in the exit rates of very small manufacturers (fewer than 20 employees), finds a report released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
 
Interestingly, small manufacturers in high-tech industries are more insulated from international competitive pressures than those in other sectors,” said Robert Feinberg, professor at American University and author of the paper.
 
The study, The Impact of International Competition on Small-Firm Exit in U.S. Manufacturing, focused on 1990 to 2004. The author noted little variation in the overall exit rate of small manufacturers over time, but a reasonable amount of variation across firm size and industry.
 
Factors affecting exit …

Source: Statistics Canada
 
Prices for manufactured products edged up in February, as higher prices for primary metals were partly offset by lower prices for motor vehicles. The growth in raw materials prices was slowed substantially by a drop in crude oil prices.

From January to February, prices charged by manufacturers, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), rose 0.1%, a marked slowdown compared with the increases of 1.1% in December and 1.0% in January. The growth in prices for petroleum and coal products slowed considerably after three months of vigorous increases. Excluding petroleum and coal products, the IPPI would have remained unchanged in February.

Strong growth for primary metal products and, to a …

Economic activity in the manufacturing sector failed to grow in March, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business.

The manufacturing sector failed to grow in March as the PMI fell below 50 percent for the second consecutive month. This completes the weakest quarterly performance for the U.S. economy since the second quarter 2003.

Manufacturers’ order backlogs continue to erode as the New Orders Index failed to grow for the fourth consecutive month. Additionally, manufacturers continue to experience heavy cost pressures, as the prices they pay are still rising even with slower overall demand. Some manufacturers are still benefiting from strong export demand and continue to see growth in export orders.

For the …