Europe Leads Gains in NEMA's EBCI Index

May 7, 2010
The economic environment facing electrical equipment manufacturers continued to show strong improvement in April, according to respondents to NEMA's latest

The economic environment facing electrical equipment manufacturers continued to show strong improvement in April, according to respondents to NEMA's latest business confidence survey. While the Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI) for current North American conditions was unchanged in April at 71.7 points, it matched its highest monthly level since May 2004.

The EBCI index is derived from responses to a survey of senior executives of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), Rosslyn, Va. A value above 50 points indicates that more respondents reported the business environment improved from the previous month than reported that it worsened.

Eleven of the 23 panelists responding to the April survey, or 47.8 percent, reported business conditions had improved relative to March, while only one panelist reported they deteriorated. The EBCI for future North American conditions, which advanced 2.2 points to 73.9 points in April, reflects widespread sentiment that the improvement seen over the last several months will persist through the summer. Only one survey panelist expects conditions to deteriorate over the next six months, against 12 expecting them to improve.

The EBCI Indexes for global markets also were up, with Europe enjoying increases of 15.6 points for current conditions to 65.6 points and a whopping 26.5-point increase to 76.5 points for future conditions. At 68.4 points for current conditions and 72.5 points for future conditions, Latin America posted increases of 4.5 points and 6.7 points, respectively, while the Asia-Pacific region posted increases of 4.7 points for current conditions and 4.4 points for future conditions, and was at 69.4 points and 71.1 points, respectively.