2008

Canadian manufacturing sales dropped 3.4% to $48.6 billion in December, the lowest level in three years. Longer-than-normal shutdowns at several motor vehicle plants were the primary source of the deep cut in sales.
 
Excluding the motor vehicle and parts industries, total manufacturing sales decreased a more moderate 0.8% in December.

December’s decline was the largest since August 2003, when a widespread electrical blackout and its fallout thereafter impacted much of Ontario’s production during that month.

Deep cuts in volumes manufactured
Despite ongoing strength in key price-driven industries, overall manufacturing activity decreased in four of the last five months, due in part to some significant cuts in the volume …

The housing collapse and a consumer-based recession, particularly affecting the automobile, housing and most recently the services sectors, present significant short-term challenges to the U.S. economy, according to a new report.

The Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI Quarterly Economic Forecast predicts that inflation-adjusted GDP growth will slow to 1.3 percent in 2008 before improving to 2.5 percent in 2009. GDP growth will be down an average of 0.6 percent in the first two quarters before returning to growth in the second half of 2008.

By supplying major assumptions for the economy and running simulations through the Global Insight Macroeconomic Model, the Alliance generates macroeconomic and industry forecasts.

Recessions are caused by severe shocks,” …

December U.S. manufacturing technology consumption totaled $400.31 million, according to AMT – the Association For Manufacturing Technology and AMTDA, the American Machine Tool Distributors’Association. This total, as reported by companies participating in the USMTC program, was up 7.5% from November, and up 20.9% from the total of $331.23 million reported for December 2006. With a year-end total of $4,261.47 million, 2007 was up 8.0% compared with 2006.

These numbers and all data in this report are based on the totals of actual data reported by companies participating in the USMTC program.

Exceptionally strong December results have driven 2007 manufacturing technology orders to a level 8% above 2006,” said John B. Byrd III, AMT President. “This is the fourth …