Electrical manufacturers saw the worse market conditions over the past two months but are optimistic about future business prospects, according to the Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI).
The EBCI, a monthly survey of senior executives in the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), Rosslyn, Va., shows that current North American conditions slid for a second month in a row in August, dropping by 6.5 points to 39.1 points A reading of less than 50 points indicates a softening economy. The August decline from the July survey to below 50 points also suggests that the deterioration in conditions accelerated from a month ago.
However, the EBCI six-month outlook continued to provide some cause for optimism. Though the future conditions index for North America retreated slightly from July, it topped the “break-even” threshold of 50 points for a fourth straight month at a solid 54.3 points.
The EBCI current conditions readings in global markets were also mixed. European business conditions improved from a month ago in August, although at a slower rate, while the Latin American current conditions EBCI slipped below 50 points. The Asia/Pacific index also remained below 50 points, but improved markedly from a month ago. The optimistic near-term North American outlook extended to the other world regions, with the EBCIs for future conditions in Latin America, Europe and Asia/Pacific all well above 50 points in August.
This month’s EBCI results correspond with the mixed business signals seen in many end-use market segments. The current problems in the residential market are well documented. But the most recent Construction Put-in-Place statistics from the Department of Commerce for the office, health-care and educational market segments show double-digit year-to-year increases, as shown in the “Vital Statistics” chart on page 3.