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Top Distributor Sectors
Ryerson Sales Up 21% in 1Q 2007
Metals service center Ryerson Inc., Chicago, IL, reported profit of $28.1 million on sales of $1.7 billion in the first quarter 2007, up 21% from the same period last year.
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"'We were pleased with the progress we made in the first quarter of 2007," said Neil S. Novich, president and CEO. "In the third quarter of 2006, we put in place new supply chain management and improved inventory processes. We saw the result in the first quarter of 2007 with current value of inventory down $241 million, or 15%, from the end of 2006, and we are on track to attain our goal of five turns by year-end 2007.
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"In mid-2006, we also began a project to address the profitability of five, large underperforming service centers. We ...
Top Distributor Sectors
OfficeSource Acquires NDI Wholesale

OfficeSource Inc., Denver, CO, wholesaler of office furniture, today announced it has acquired NDI Wholesale, Nashville, TN, independent office furniture wholesaler in the Southeast.
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NDI Wholesale services more than 530 active customers throughout a seven-state region, including Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida.
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The addition of NDI Wholesale fits our business model and strategy perfectly," explained Todd Elmers, chairman and CEO. "It takes our coast-to-coast presence another step closer toward a full nationwide distribution network."
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NDI Wholesale complements OfficeSource's existing locations, products and services. NDI Wholesale dealers provide a complete array of office furniture as well as ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Barnes Group Renames Industrial Business Segment

Barnes Group Inc., Bristol, CT, has renamed its Associated Spring business segment Barnes Industrial. The Barnes Industrial business segment consists of six business units: Precision Forming; Retention Rings; Nitrogen Gas Products; Precision Valves; Engineered Springs; and Plastics. The Associated Spring brand will remain within the Engineered Springs SBU.
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The name change more accurately identifies the end markets and customers of the individual businesses within Barnes Industrial, according to a news release. The change to Barnes Industrial brings the name of the business segment in parallel with Barnes Group Inc.'s other two business segments -Barnes Aerospace and Barnes Distribution.
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Barnes Group is an international aerospace and industrial ...
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Manufacturing Expands for Third Straight Month

Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in April for the third consecutive month, while the overall economy grew for the 66th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business.
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Manufacturing activity increased in April; the PMI reflects accelerating growth for the month. New Orders and Production improved significantly as did Employment.
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Manufacturers are now in their ninth month of inventory reduction, so supply chains are generally in balance. On the negative side, prices continue to rise at a rapid rate with metals and energy being the areas of greatest concern to buyers.
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The 11 industries reporting growth in April & mdash; listed in order & mdash; are: Wood ...
Top Distributor Sectors
NAED Reports Slowdown in Distributor Sales Growth

The number of electrical distributors reporting sales growth continued to decline during the first quarter of 2007, however they look for a strong upturn in the second quarter, according to National Association of Electrical Distributors' newly released Quarterly Sales Change Expectation Survey.
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For the quarter ended March 31, 61.2% of distributors indicated their sales had grown. This marked the third consecutive quarter in which the percentage of distributors reporting growth had declined. The portion of distributors estimating increases of 10% or more remained virtually unchanged from the prior quarter at 29.5%. The number of distributors whose sales declined grew to 31.7%. Among regions, the Northeast experienced a difficult quarter as only 32.4% of distributors ...
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Canadian Manufacturers Positive About Production Prospects
Release taken from Statistics Canada, www.statcan.ca
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Manufacturers were more upbeat about their current situation and prospects for production and employment for the second quarter of&nbsp ; 2007, according to the April Business Conditions Survey.
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The Business Conditions Survey is a quarterly survey that requests manufacturers' opinions on production impediments, finished product inventory levels, new and unfilled order levels and production and employment prospects in the coming three months. The voluntary survey was conducted in the first two weeks of April and attracted over&nbsp ; 3,000&nbsp ; responses from manufacturers.
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Manufacturers positive about production prospects
In April, 22% of manufacturers stated they would ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Rockwell Sales Flat in U.S.
Rockwell Automation, Inc., Milwaukee, WI, reported fiscal 2007 second quarter net income of $729.3 million, including a gain from the sale of its Power Systems segment. Profit in the second quarter excluding this was $142.3 million.
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Sales in the quarter, which exclude Power Systems, were $1,206.5 million, up 8%. Sales in the U.S. were flat compared to the second quarter of 2006. International sales increased 13%, excluding the effect of currency translation, with continued strength in Europe and Latin America, and weaker results in Asia Pacific and Canada.
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From an end market perspective, sales into resource-based end markets continued to pace growth, and sales into consumer-facing industries grew at about the company average. Sales to the global automotive ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Builders FirstSource Sales Down 30% in 1Q

Builders FirstSource, Inc., Dallas, TX, a supplier and manufacturer of structural and related building products for residential new construction, reported sales of $411.1 million in the first quarter ended March 31, 2007, down 30.2% from the same period a year ago. Profit was $0.2 million.
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We continued to face very challenging market conditions during the first quarter,' said Floyd Sherman, Builders FirstSource CEO ."The combined impact of decreased housing starts and lower market prices for lumber products reduced our sales."
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Builders FirstSource reported a decline of 36.2% in housing activity in its markets. Also, commodity lumber and lumber sheet goods prices had a 5.7% negative effect on sales.
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The company said it ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Smith International Sales Grow 25% in 1Q

Smith International, Inc., supplier to the oil and gas industry, reported first-quarter sales were $2.11 billion, compared with sales of $1.68 billion in the same period a year ago. Profit was $160.2 million, up from $107 million a year ago.
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Offshore business volumes accounted for 90% of the Oilfield segment revenue increase over the December quarter, impacted by demand for drilling and completion fluids, environmental solutions and borehole enlargement technologies.
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On a geographic basis, increased activity in the U.S. deepwater market and rising offshore investment in the Eastern Hemisphere region, including the North Sea, Former Soviet Union and Middle East/Asia, accounted for the majority of the sequential improvement.
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Business ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Timken Sales Up 2% in 1Q

The Timken Co., Canton, OH, reported sales of $1.28 billion in the first quarter 2007, an increase of 2% over the same period a year ago. Income from continuing operations was $41.6 million.
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Sales in Asia were up 17%.
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The Industrial Group had first-quarter sales of $544.4 million, up 8% from $503.9 million for the same period last year. Favorable pricing and higher volume drove the increase, with sales strength coming from multiple market sectors, especially aerospace and heavy industry.
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The Automotive Group's first-quarter sales of $388 million were down 8% from $421 million for the same period last year. The decrease was driven by the sale of its steering business at the end of 2006 and lower demand from North American light vehicle and ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Industrial Production Falls 0.2% in March

Industrial production decreased 0.2 percent in March after an increase of 0.8 percent in February. Output in the manufacturing sector moved up 0.7 percent in March; the increase was led by advances in the production of durable goods.
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The output of utilities dropped 7.0 percent, largely reversing its February jump of 7.6 percent, as temperatures swung from below seasonal norms in February to above seasonal norms in March.
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Mining output edged up 0.1 percent in March. At 112.5 percent of its 2002 average, overall industrial production for March was 2.3 percent above its year-earlier level.
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The rate of capacity utilization for total industry fell 0.2 percentage point, to 81.4 percent, a level 0.4 percentage point above its 1972-2006 ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Praxair Sales Rise 8% in 1Q

Praxair, Inc., Danbury, CT, reported sales in the first quarter 2007 rose 8% from the prior-year quarter, excluding the effect of lower natural gas prices passed through in hydrogen prices. Profit rose 18%.
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Higher overall pricing and volumes across all major end markets contributed to the increase.
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In North America, first-quarter sales reached $1,205 million, 5% above the prior-year quarter excluding the effect of lower natural gas prices passed through in hydrogen prices. Sales growth came primarily from energy and general manufacturing markets, where demand continues to be strong for new gases applications.
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In Europe, sales in the quarter of $330 million grew 23%, and increased 14% excluding currency effects. Underlying sales growth ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Kennametal Sales Up 6% YTD
Kennametal Inc., Latrobe, PA, reported sales in the third quarter 2007 increased 7% on an organic basis to $616 million. Sales in the first nine months of fiscal 2007 were up 6% on an organic basis to $1.7 billion.
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Metalworking Solutions & Services Group (MSSG) growth of 7% (organic) in the third quarter was led by year-over-year expansion in the distribution, general engineering and machine tool markets and the effect of an acquisition. The European market (up 8%) continued to be favorable. Asia Pacific (up 22%) and India (up 25%) delivered double-digit growth, while the North American market showed flat-to-modest growth of 2%.
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Advanced Materials Solutions Group (AMSG) sales grew 6% on an organic basis. Energy product sales were up 18%, mining and ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Huttig Building Products 1Q Sales Fall 21%
Huttig Building Products, Inc., St. Louis, MO, a domestic distributor of millwork, building materials and wood products, reported sales for the first quarter 2007 were $222.4 million, down 21% from $281.1 million in 2006.
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That reflects a 30% drop in housing starts. Sales to national accounts for Huttig, which represented 36% of sales in the first quarter 2007, as compared with 34% last year, declined by 16%.
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Huttig reports there is no indication that the new housing construction market is likely to pick up this year, but it expects the market has stabilized. Huttig has implemented several cost reduction strategies in the past several months, including streamlining regional management from four to two groups, and closing underperforming distribution facilities ...
Economic Trends
Canadian Wholesale Revenues Pick Up in February

Following a lackluster start to the year, wholesaling activity in Canada picked up in February with higher sales of food and personal and household products accounting for much of the increase.
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Wholesale sales rose by&nbsp ; 0.8% to&nbsp ; $43.0&nbsp ; billion in February, reversing all of the&nbsp ; 0.7% decline posted in January. The most significant increase came in the personal and household goods sector (+4.0%), which resumed its upward momentum after a significant drop in January. The food, beverages and tobacco products sector also had a solid month (+2.4%), as did the automotive products (+1.9%) sector.
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These gains were partially offset by declines in the building materials (-2.2%) and other products" (-1.5%) sectors.
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Wholesalers in ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Lawson Products Sales Agents Indicted on Fraud







Sales agents for Lawson Products, Des Plaines, IL, have been indicted on federal fraud charges. The sales agents allegedly paid kickbacks totaling $140,000 to employees of some of their customers, including suburban municipalities, school districts, a non-profit organization and private businesses.
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They disguised the kickbacks as purchasing incentives, according to the US Attorney's office in Chicago. In return, the sales agents allegedly obtained higher sales commissions based on greater volume and prices.
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Eleven of the defendants were charged in six separate cases in Chicago, while two additional cases were filed in Dayton, OH, and Philadelphia, PA. All of the cases involve commissioned sales agents for either Des Plaines-based ...
Top Distributor Sectors
U.S. PT/MC Sales Grow 9.3% in February
After a four-month decline in U.S. distributors'sales of Power Transmission/Motion Control products at the end of 2006, this year's sales continued to show positive growth with a 9.3 percent jump in sales for February, according to the most recent trend data report from the Power Transmission Distributors Association.
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When matched up against February 2006 sales, sales in February 2007 were up 8.8 percent. Accounts receivable collection days were up 0.5 percent in February after a steep decline the previous month; accounts receivable collection days were up 1.5 percent compared to the same period last year.
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Following a drop in December 2006 sales, Canadian distributors'sales in PT/MC products posted its second consecutive month of gains, rising 8.5 percent ...
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Relationships Differentiate in Global Markets
A few follow-up thoughts on the global industrial products trade fair in Hannover, Germany last week. I came away with two very distinct, very different thoughts about what is happening in industrial markets, how customers are sourcing, and the impact on distributors.
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First the mind-boggling news. Some end-user customers and distributors I interviewed there were looking for the next source of product beyond China. Why? China pricing will be too expensive in a year or two. It's hard to exaggerate how many times I had to process that thought: China pricing is too high& hellip; "
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Of course, it is no surprise except for the speed at which the search for the next lowest-price source of product is happening. India, Turkey and other low labor-cost countries are in ...
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Inflation by Commodity Group

These 16 select product groups provide a snapshot of inflation trends. First quarter 2006 is compared with first quarter 2007, and the fourth quarter 2006 with the first quarter 2007.

Metals & Metal Products
Plumbing Fixtures & Fittings
Fasteners
Hardware
Hand & Edge Tools

Chemicals & Allied Products
Adhesives & Sealants
Industrial Gases

Machinery & Equipment
Mechanical Power Transmission Equipment
Pumps, Compressors & Equipment
Electrical Machinery & Equipment
Ball and Roller Bearings
Metal Valves, Except Fluid Power
Industrial Material Handling Equipment
Fluid Power Equipment
Welding Machines & Equipment
Cutting ...

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