U.S. manufacturers of power transmission products experienced an increase in sales while Canadian manufacturers had a drop in sales in August 2009, according to sales data released by the Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA). Confidence in the Canadian market (as measured on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being most optimistic) fell by 0.4 from last month to 4.1 the first drop since February 2009. U.S. confidence is holding at a current negative position of 4.7 for the second consecutive month.
U.S. manufacturers’ sales rose by 10.7% in August 2009 when compared to July 2009. Sales in August 2009 are down 30.6% compared to the same period last year. Orders in August 2009 increased by 10.4% over July 2009 orders.
Canadian manufacturers’ sales fell 6.6% compared to July 2009. Sales were down 23.8% when compared to the same period last year.
Product-by-product sales between July 2009 and August 2009 reflect the change in sales experienced by U.S. and Canadian manufacturers. Six of nine product categories for U.S. manufacturers – mounted bearings, positioning systems/linear motion products, shaft couplings, standard industrial motors, unmounted bearings and variable speed drives – posted sales gains.
For Canadian manufacturers, three product categories posted sales gains – shaft couplings, positioning systems/linear motion products and variable speed drives.
The Market Outlook Report is published monthly by the Power Transmission Distributors Association. The full report includes U.S. and Canadian manufacturer data for sales and order trends for mounted bearings, unmounted bearings, standard industrial motors, variable speed drives, positioning systems/linear motion products, gear products, clutches and brakes, shaft couplings and mechanical drive systems and other PT products.
Year-end data for 2007 and 2008 is available in a complete report. To purchase the year-end data or to begin a subscription to the monthly data, order online at www.ptda.org/store or call PTDA at +1.312.516.2100. PTDA members may download the report at no charge through the PTDA Web site at www.ptda.org/MOR.
