Supplier Deliveries, New Orders Lift Business Index

Growth in the Precision Machining Index has slowed since reaching a multi-year high in May 2017.  At that time the component readings for new orders and production pushed the overall index into record territory.

Registering 53.5 for September, the Gardner Business Index (GBI): Precision Machining registered its lowest monthly reading in 2017. This latest reading lowers the year-to-date index average to 55.5 and closed the third quarter with an average 54.9 reading. For the year-to-date and 12-month periods, the index changed approximately -2 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Gardner Intelligence’s review of the underlying data for the month indicates that supplier deliveries, production, employment, and new orders lifted the business index higher while backlog and exports pulled the index lower. The only component that contracted for the month was exports, which fell to a 16-month low after having registered a slight expansion in the prior month. 

Among the components of the Precision Machining Index during the third quarter, production, new orders, and backlog readings indicated slowing growth. This contrasts with supplier delivery and employment readings, which throughout 2017 have shown continuing growth.  More information about the Precision Machining Index can be found at gardnerintelligence.com.

The three-month moving average of production and new orders illustrates the slowing growth in two of the most significant components, which pushed the Precision Machining Index to a multi-year high earlier in 2017.