February 18, 2009 - Modern Distribution Management

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February 18, 2009

Wholesale Prices Rise 0.8% in January

Wholesale prices rose 0.8% in January, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported. This increase followed declines of 1.9% in December and 2.5% in November.
 
At the earlier stages of processing, the decrease in prices for intermediate materials slowed to 0.7% from 4.2% in the prior month, and the index for crude materials declined 2.9% after dropping 5.3% in December.
 
The upturn in the index for finished goods was led by the index for energy goods, which increased 3.7% after falling 9.1% in December. Price declines for finished consumer foods slowed to 0.4% in January from 1.4% in the preceding month. The index for finished goods less foods and energy (core inflation) increased 0.4% following a 0.2-percent rise a ...

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Forecast: GDP to Decline 2.1% in 2009

The latest Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI Quarter Economic Forecast predicts that inflation-adjusted gross domestic product (GDP), which grew by 1.3% in 2008, will decline 2.1% in 2009 before rebounding to 2.2% growth in 2010. The GDP forecast for 2009 in the current MAPI report is double the previously anticipated 1% decline for this year projected in the November 2008 release. 

We are in the midst of a very severe global recession in manufacturing which looks to be the worst recession since 1973-74 in terms of depth and duration, said Daniel J. Meckstroth, MAPI chief economist. "Manufacturing did not create the problem but is paying the price for the problems that began in the financial markets." 

MAPI economists ...

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Barnes Group Reports 4Q Loss of $10 Million

Barnes Group Inc., Bristol, CT, recorded a loss of $10 million for the fourth quarter 2008, as compared to profit of $17.6 million for the same period 2007. Sales for the quarter declined 25% to $265.4 million.
 
For the full year, sales were $1.36 billion, down 4% from 2007. Profit was down 14.2% to $87 million.  
 
Fourth quarter sales in Logistics and Manufacturing Services were $146 million, down 16% from the same period last year. Operating profit was $5.4 million, compared with $12.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. Sales declines were driven primarily by slowing customer demand in North American and Europe.
 
Full year segment sales were $691.8 million, down 2%.  
 
Precision Component fourth quarter sales dropped 34% in ...

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PT/MC Sales Continue To Slow

The Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA) reported that U.S. distributors and manufacturers experienced overall growth in sales in 2008 while their Canadian counterparts experienced a decline in sales. Confidence in the market (as measured on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being most optimistic) has eroded overall, holding a current neutral position between 4.6 and 5.2 versus a range of 5.0 to 5.8 at year-end 2007.
 
Growth in sales of PT/MC products is definitely slowing. Following a moderate growth rate of 6.6% in 2007, U.S. distributors saw a 4.3% increase in PT/MC product sales in 2008. The annualized sales-to-inventory ratio for 2008 was at 6.5, compared to 7.6 in 2007.
 
Canadian distributors ended the year with a drop in sales of 0.5%, ...

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