METALWORKING BUSINESS ACTIVITY REPORTS ADDITIONAL SLOWING CONTRACTION

St. Paul, MN (August 13, 2020) –According to the Gardner Business Index (GBI): Metalworking moved higher during July for a third consecutive month, reaching 46.1. Excluding supplier deliveries due to the disruptive impact that COVID-19 continues to exert on supply chains, the index was supported by rising readings for production, new orders, export and backlog activity. Only the reading for employment activity reported an accelerating contraction during the month.

Production and new orders are ranking second- and third-highest components, which is welcome news as these measures frequently act as leading indicators of other measures including backlog, supplier deliveries and employment.

Upticks in Business Sentiment and Operational Activity Suggest a Rebound is at Hand: The combination of improved business sentiment combined with currently improving business conditions for some classes of metalworking firms suggests that the total impairment from COVID-19 on the metalworking industry could be at or near its limits.

The last three months of index results have implied a probable limit on the total impairment that COVID-19 may have on the metalworking industry. As early as June, some classes of firms had reported seeing month-to-month improvements in business activity. This has been particularly true for larger firms, which have now reported two consecutive months of expanding overall activity. This rebound has been further supported by Gardner Business Intelligence’s future business expectations data, which has strongly rebounded since April and is now well above the “no-change” reading of 50.

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Matsuura Machinery USA, Inc., located in St. Paul, MN is the U.S. subsidiary of Matsuura Machinery Corporation in Japan. Matsuura, an innovator in the design, development and manufacture of high-precision manufacturing solutions for more than 80 years, has been the forerunner in designing pioneering technology and manufacturing solutions to a variety of industries around the globe. Matsuura Machinery USA, Inc. delivers unmatched excellence in 5-axis, vertical, horizontal, linear motor, multi-tasking CNC machine tools and machines with a powder bed metal AM platform with machining capability. Matsuura Machinery USA, Inc. provides the service, applications and technical field support that have always been the Matsuura standard for business.

For more information about Matsuura, please contact: [email protected].