Moldmaking Industry Continues Upswing in March
The Moldmaking Index has seen a rise of more than six points since the end of 2021, manifested primarily between the months of February and March as new orders, backlog and production continue to accelerate.
The Gardner Business Index (GBI) Moldmaking reached a reading of 62.7 in March, a notable 4.7 points higher than February. Photo Credit, all images: Gardner Business Intelligence
The Gardner Business Index (GBI) Moldmaking in 2022 has been guided by steadily increasing rates, closing March with a reading of 62.7, an uptick of more than six points since the end of 2021. Almost half of this reading increase was manifested between the months of February and March; the latter’s reading is now within one point of the GBI high reported in June 2021 (63.7).
Production, backlogs and new orders (shown as a three-month moving average) drove accelerating activity, with supplier deliveries and exports generally unchanged.
Up 3.5 points in March, new orders drove the trio of accelerating activity—including backlog and production—all of which are converging on an index reading of 60-61. Employment activity parallels the trio in terms of growth rate, which increased in March by 3.4 points versus February’s, which reported a total index reading of 55. Supplier delivery and export (still contracting) components are essentially unchanged in March.
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