January 2009

Wholesale prices fell 1.9 percent in December, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported. This decrease followed a 2.2-percent decline in November and a 2.8-percent drop in October.
 
At the earlier stages of processing, prices received by producers of intermediate goods fell 4.2 percent in December after decreasing 4.3 percent in the prior month, and the crude goods index declined 5.3 percent following a 12.5-percent drop in November. The slower rate of decrease in finished goods prices was led by the index for energy goods, which fell 9.3 percent in December after declining 11.2 percent in November. 
 
Prices for finished goods other than foods and energy (core inflation) rose 0.2 percent in December compared …

As the U.S. remains the epicenter of the global economic crisis, a shell-shocked world begins a new year with a somber outlook, according to a new report from MAPI.

In the MAPI Quarterly Forecast of U.S. Exports, Global Growth, and the Dollar: First Quarter 2009 Through Fourth Quarter 2009, economist Cliff Waldman writes that data and forecasts through the end of 2008 reveal the bleakest global outlook in the post World War II era.

The depth of the U.S. economic downturn and financial disruptions which have spread globally have created a nearly synchronized slump in industrialized country output, Waldman said. “In addition, recent data reveal an eroding picture for the emerging world, in sharp contrast to the mixed prospects that were expected …

November U.S. manufacturing technology consumption totaled $185.57 million, according to the American Machine Tool Distributors’ Association and the Association for Manufacturing Technology. This total, as reported by companies participating in the USMTC program, was down 34.7% from October and down 51.4% from the total of $381.76 million reported for November 2007. With a year-to-date total of $4,004.31 million, 2008 is up 2.8% compared with 2007.

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

The November numbers demonstrate the much publicized slowdown in manufacturing, said Peter Borden, AMTDA president. “After three years of averaging over 2,000 …