With 80 companies responding, the PMPA Business Trends Index for August jumped 19 points (17%) from July’s 112 reported last month. August’s 131 value was the highest for an August Ever, and among the top months recorded since the Great Recession. While 131 is a great (very high!) value, we think that the real story is the month to month variation in Demand that our shop owners have been successfully managing since the election last November. Just look at the graph.
Double digit month to month changes in 2017 unlike those experienced in last half of 2016
Sentiment for the next three months remains positive for Sales, Lead Time, Profitability, and Employment even as the seasonality of the 4th Quarter are considered.
The Federal Reserve Board’s Industrial Production Indicator fell 0.9 of a percent in August- 3/4 of which they attributed to Hurricane Harvey.
We suspect that rebuilding activity could increase demand for the capital goods sectors that use our components.
PMPA members can get the full report here August 2017 Business Trends Report
Speaking of Precision Blog 