Machine tool consumption down 8pc in April

Manufacturing News, Source : TheManufacturer.com
Published : 11 Jun 2002 8:29

US machine tool demand dropped 8% in April, according to a study released Sunday by the American Machine Tool Distributor’s Association (AMTDA) and the Association of Manufacturing Technology.

The report indicated that April’s demand totaled $176.36 million nationwide, down 8% from $186.22 million in March.

“Manufacturing is still dragging despite some optimistic general economic reports of a near term recovery,” said Ralph Nappi, AMTDA president. “As long as manufacturing continues to move outside the US for cheaper labor and more favorable manufacturing environments, the investment in metalworking equipment will be slow. At this time, there appears to be little to stem the tide in the short term.”

The drop was most severe in the Northeast, where demand dropped 40.1% from $31.62 million to $19.05 million in April. Demand increased 23.2% in the Western US, rising from $31.62 to $38.96 million.

The machine tool report is based on surveys of 200 manufacturers, distributors, and importers of machine tools, representing 76% of the machine tool industry.

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