Metalforming manufacturers continue to see little change in business activity in the coming months according to the April 2024 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. This has been a consistent trend for this sector so far this year, with slight to no change in activity expected in the association's reports to date.
In the April report, 67% of metalforming manufacturers indicated they do not expect a change in general economic activity in the next 3 months. This is up from the 60% who said the same in the March report. Meanwhile, 21% of manufacturers forecast an increase in activity, down slightly from the 24% who said the same in March and 12% anticipate a decrease (down from 16% in March).
Incoming orders are expected to remain relatively stable as well in the coming months. Fifty-four percent of metalformers anticipate no change in orders, up from the 45% who expected to see the same in March while 33% expect orders to increase. Just 13% are forecasting orders to decrease over the next 3 months.
Average daily shipping levels were stable in April, further indicating business positivity for metalformers. More manufacturers, 48%, reported no change in shipping levels from the previous month and 21% saw an increase in April. However, 31% of metalforming manufacturers said shipping levels decreased during the month.
One aspected noted by PMA that is potentially hindering activity for metalformers is the tax landscape which the association said has lead to a 10% drop in companies expanding their workforce.
"If Congress were to roll back the tax on R&D expenditures and reinstate the ability for companies to fully deduct those costs, and restore 100% bonus depreciation, we would anticipate an immediate and positive shift in industry sentiment, hiring and future business condition projections. Resolving these critical tax issues would provide a much-needed injection of confidence and incentivize the strategic investments that are vital to maintaining our industry's competitive edge," said David Klotz, PMA president.
PMA, the trade association representing the North American metalforming industry, compiles its Business Conditions Report each month to provide an economic indicator for the next 3 months of manufacturing based on insight from 121 metalforming companies in the U.S. and Canada.
Metalworking and machine tools are an important customer segment for the fluid power industry, and therefore monitoring business activity in this sector can be a helpful indicator for the performance of the hydraulics and pneumatics market.
