New orders for metal cutting, forming and fabricating machinery (manufacturing technology) totaled $360.8 million in August 2024, according to the Association for Manufacturing Technology’s monthly U.S. Manufacturing Technology Orders Report (USMTO).

The total was up 22.7% compared to July orders, and down 12% year-over-year.

Year-to-date, orders through August totaled $2.81 billion, down 11.5% from the first eight months of 2023.

“August 2024 orders are 3.8% above those placed in a typical August,” AMT’s July report said in an Oct. 14 release. “This trend indicates the industry is still undergoing a period of normalization following the COVID disruptions rather than a true decline.”

Although order placements have been slower than those placed in 2023, order activity continues to exceed historical levels, according to the report.

“With the upcoming U.S. presidential election and the Federal Reserve beginning to reduce interest rates and signaling additional reductions, two of the major issues giving pause to additional capital investment will be alleviated by year’s end,” according to the USMTO.

The August USMTO report also shared the following:

• Contract machine shops— the largest customer of manufacturing technology — increased both the number of units order and the value of orders for the first time since March 2024, indicating that production could continue to grow.
• Manufacturers in the aerospace sector increased the value of orders by 13% from July to August 2024, while the number of units increased by 27% in that same span. This indicates that purchases are for additional capacity.
• The automative sector pulled back orders after a historically elevated buying cycle over the summer of 2024.