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These select product groups provide a snapshot of inflation trends based on the Producer Price Index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Second quarter 2009 is compared with second quarter 2008, second quarter 2009 with first quarter 2009.
The product groups in this report:
Abrasives
Adhesives & Sealants
Cutting Tools & Accessories
Hand & Edge Tools
Fasteners
Power-Driven Hand Tools
Ball & Roller Bearings
Mechanical Power Transmission Equipment
Valves, Except Fluid Power
Pumps, Compressors & Equipment
Electrical Machinery/Equipment
Industrial Material Handling Equipment
Industrial Gases
Welding Machinery/Equipment
Fluid Power Equipment
Plumbing Fixtures & Fittings
Hardware
Sanitary Paper Products
Plastic Resins & ...
This table highlights key financial metrics and trading multiples for 28 publicly traded distributors in the industrial and building products industries up to June 30, 2009. Download this data below. Also find graphic illustrating median EBIDTA multiples for the same distribution companies.
These materials, prepared by Robert W. Baird & Co. for MDM, are for informational purposes ...
Canadian wholesale sales in current dollars fell 0.3% to $40.1billion in May, its lowest level since December 2005. In volume terms, wholesale sales were unchanged in May. Weaker sales in the machinery and equipment, food, and metal products trade groups were the major factors contributing to the decrease during the month. With May's decline, wholesale sales have fallen for eight consecutive months.
In current dollars, four of the seven sectors, accounting for just over half of total wholesale sales, declined in May.
Sales in the machinery and electronic equipment sector fell0.2% in May. Almost half of this sector is accounted for by the machinery and equipment trade group, which declined 2.3%. Sales in this trade group have declined almost20% since their September2008peak.
The ...
For Safety Products Inc. (SPI), Lakeland, FL, the key to success is evolving with your customers' needs while focusing on your specialty. The safety products distributor was recently featured at TheLedger.com.
As detailed in the article, CEO and founder Ed Williams has managed to expand the company's offerings without straying from its central specialty - no small feat when you look at how the safety products marketplace has changed over the last two decades. More broadline distributorsand distributors specialized in other product areas have added safety products to their offerings, bringing new competitors into the space. According to the article, "At one time SPI competed against a number of ...
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index was -1.80 in June, up from -2.30 in May. All four broad categories of indicators continued to make negative contributions to the index, with employment and housing-related indicators accounting for much of the weakness in June.
The three-month moving average, CFNAI-MA3, was -2.12 in June, up from -2.65 in the previous month. June's CFNAI-MA3 suggests that growth in national economic activity was well below its historical trend. With regard to inflation, the amount of economic slack reflected in the CFNAI-MA3 indicates low inflationary pressure from economic activity over the coming year.
The increase in the index was primarily due to the production and income category of indicators. This category made a smaller negative contribution to the ...
Cautious optimism is how most manufacturing executives are approaching the economy over the next six months, according to the results of a recent survey by accounting and consulting firm Baker Tilly. While 57% of respondents said they had a somewhat optimistic" or "very optimistic" outlook for the U.S. economy in the next six months, 47% said the same about the manufacturing sector.
In addition, executives indicated that the massive layoffs that have been occurring at manufacturers of all sizes may be reaching an end. While 20% of respondents indicated they intend to reduce staffing levels over the next six months, 70% said they were planning to keep their staffing levels where they are. On top of that, 9% said they were planning to increase staff.
And while several companies said ...
IndustryWeek today offers an endorsement of a distributor's value; the online magazine looks at what it means for a distributor to offer true value, and also offers "nontraditional performance measurements," as provided by SKF's Bill Moore, to judge whether a distributor is effective as a strategic partner.
Moore tells IndustryWeek that engineering assistance supplied by a distributor is one example of a value-add - it can address recurring equipment failure problems, and improve overall performance.
One metric Moore offers in the article - how prepared a distributor is to react in emergencies - anything from an equipment failure to a ...
The Conference Board Leading Economic Index for the U.S. increased for the third consecutive month in June, improving 0.7%. The six-month change in the index has risen to 2.0% (a 4.1% annual rate) in the period through June, up substantially from -3.1% (a -6.2% annual rate) for the previous six months, and the strengths among the leading indicators have remained balanced with the weaknesses in recent months. The Conference Board LEI for the U.S. now stands at 100.9 (2004=100).
The Coincident Economic Index for the U.S. continued to decrease in June amid further contractions in employment and industrial production, posting a negative 0.2%.
Between December 2008 and June 2009, the index fell 3.0% (a -5.9% annual rate), slightly faster than the decline of 2.8% (a -5.6% annual rate) for ...
Housing starts were up 3.6% in June, compared to May estimates, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The rate of 582,000 is 46% below June 2008 figures.
Single-family housing starts were 470,000, up 14.4% from May.
Housing units authorized by building permits were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 563,000, 8.7% above the May rate but down 52% from the June 2008 estimate. Single-family authorizations were at a rate of 430,000, 5.9% above May. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 109,000.
Privately-owned housing completions in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 818,000, 0.4% below the revised May estimate and 27.7% below the June 2008 rate. ...
The road to recovery in the manufacturing sector will likely be slow, arduous, and painstaking, but there is some evidence that the worst has passed, according to the quarterly Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI Survey on the Business Outlook- June 2009. The June 2009 composite index rose to 24 from an historic low of 21 reported in the March 2009 report.
At 24%, the index indicates that overall manufacturing activity is expected to contract over the next three to six months. While the index is at its second lowest level since the survey originated in March 1972, it marks the first time it has shown improvement since June 2007. The survey was conducted on a semi-annual basis from 1972 to 1991 before being conducted on a quarterly basis in 1991. It should be noted, however, that the ...
May 2009 wholesale revenues were $311.3 billion, up 0.2% from the revised April level, but down 19.9% from the May 2008 level. The April preliminary estimate was revised upward $1.4 billion or 0.4%.
May sales of durable goods were down 0.2% from last month and were down 23.0% from a year ago. Sales of metals and minerals, except petroleum were down 8.1% for last month, while motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies were up 4.4%. Sales of nondurable goods were up 0.5% from last month, but were down 17.2% from last year.
Sales of petroleum and petroleum products were up 4.6% from last month and sales of drugs and druggists' sundries were up 1.4%.
Total inventories were $402.2 billion at the end of May, down 0.8% from the revised April level and were down 7.6% from a ...
Industrial production decreased 0.4% in June after having fallen 1.2% in May. For the second quarter as a whole, output fell at an annual rate of 11.6%, a more moderate contraction than in the first quarter, when output fell 19.1%.
Manufacturing output moved down 0.6% in June, with declines at both durable and nondurable goods producers. Outside of manufacturing, the output of mines fell 0.5% in June, and the output of utilities increased 0.8%.
The rate of capacity utilization for total industry declined in June to 68.0%, a level 12.9 percentage points below its average for 1972-2008. Prior to the current recession, the low over the history of this series, which begins in 1967, was 70.9% in December 1982. ...
Canadian manufacturing sales fell 6.0% to $38.4 billion in May, the lowest level since November 1998. Manufacturing sales leveled off between February and April, after falling by 18.7% between October 2008 and January 2009. Plant shutdowns in the motor vehicle and primary metal industries, along with continued volatility in the aerospace industry, accounted for most of the decline in May.
Constant dollar manufacturing sales fell 5.8% in May, indicating that lower volumes rather than price changes were behind the decrease in sales. Sales in 17 of 21 manufacturing industries decreased in May, accounting for about three-quarters of total sales.
By Sector
The transportation equipment industry led the declines, falling 25.7% compared with April. Excluding the transportation equipment ...
Wholesale prices rose 1.8% in June, seasonally adjusted, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. At the earlier stages of processing, prices received by producers of intermediate goods climbed 1.9 percent in June after moving up 0.3 percent in the preceding month, and the crude goods index increased 4.6 percent following a 3.6-percent rise in May.
The June acceleration in finished goods prices was broad-based. The index for energy goods jumped 6.6 percent after advancing 2.9 percent in the prior month, prices for consumer foods increased 1.1 percent following a 1.6-percent drop in May, and the index for goods other than foods and energy rose 0.5 percent in June after edging down 0.1 percent in the previous month.
Before seasonal adjustment, the ...
The worldwide plunge in manufacturing output seems to have reached a temporary bottom, even in countries such as Japan where the industrial downturn was especially severe. Nonetheless, the immediate outlook for a resumption of world economic growth remains tentative and in flux, according to the MAPI Quarterly Forecast of U.S. Exports, Global Growth, and the Dollar: Third Quarter 2009 Through Fourth Quarter 2010.
Weak growth, at best, is in store for the advanced economies during 2010, according to MAPI economist Cliff Waldman.The short-term prospects are mixed for key emerging market economies, depending upon the degree of openness, export diversification, and ties to the United States. The report says that U.S. export demand will contract at an historic pace before ...
More signs are appearing that an end to the recession is on its way. Several indicators are inching their way upward, according to the latest Small Business Economic Trends report, released by the National Federation of Independent Business. However, the report also warns that there are bound to be bumps along the road to recovery as the economy reorganizes itself.
The report indicates the labor market is finding a foothold, even if a bit slippery," with forecasts pointing to unemployment declining to 8.8% in the next three months.
Additionally, the credit freeze predicted earlier this year never materialized, and June data indicate the credit market actually may be easing. Obtaining credit is more difficult for small businesses than it was in 2003, but credit patterns are no ...
Panjiva, a firm that tracks overseas suppliers to the U.S., saw a 1% decline in the number of global manufacturers shipping to the U.S. in June, similar to May's trade data. According to the firm, the slight decline from May to June is slightly less than last year's May-to-June decrease. To Panjiva, it looks like global trade is tracking its "typical seasonal path."
Panjiva Watch List numbers were unchanged:
The percentage of significant manufacturers on the Panjiva Watch List remains at 30%. The percentage of significant buyers having done business wtih a Panjiva Watach List supplier in the preceding three months remains at 40%.
About the Watch List:
Manufacturers that have suffered a 50% or greater decline in volume shipped to American customers in the most recent ...
The European manufacturing sector saw an accelerated downward trend in the first part of 2009 and will face challenges throughout the year, before seeing the potential for marginal improvement in 2010, according to the semiannual Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI European Industrial Outlook: 2009-2010 (ER-682e), a report that analyzes 14 major industries.
The report separately analyzes two distinct regions: Western Europe and Central Europe. The former generally comprises the 15 countries that form the currency union (Eurozone), while the latter includes the four largest economies of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE4): the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia.
Kris Bledowski, Ph.D., Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI Economist and report author, forecasts a continued decline for ...
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