Another Strong Quarter for Metalworking
The Gardner Business Index for September 2017 shows that the metalworking industry is continuing its upward trend.
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The Metalworking Index finished strongly in September, slightly above its year-to-date average. Strong readings in production, new orders and supplier deliveries have been critical to this success.
After posting 14 consecutive months of declining readings during 2015 and 2016, employment in the metalworking industry during the second quarter of 2017 easily surpassed the prior record established in the second quarter of 2014.
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Registering 56.2 for September, the Gardner Business Index (GBI): Metalworking added another strong monthly reading to an already impressive 2017. This latest reading raised the average for the year-to-date period to 55.6 and the average reading for the 3rd quarter to 55.3. The index is up approximately 12 percent and 15 percent for the year-to-date and 12-month periods, respectively. Gardner Intelligence’s review of the underlying data for the month of September indicates that production, supplier deliveries and new orders lifted the business index higher, while employment, backlogs and exports pulled the index lower. The only component of the overall index that contracted for the month was exports.
The GBI reading among only job shops fell slightly for the month, pulling down the year-to-date average reading for this segment to 55.2. More information about the Metalworking Index can be found at gardnerintelligence.com.
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