New orders for metal cutting, forming and fabricating machinery (manufacturing technology) totaled $389.9 million in February, according to the Association for Manufacturing Technology’s monthly Manufacturing Technology Orders Report (USMTO).

Month-to-month, that total increased 9.9% from January and increased 12.5% year-over-year. The monthly figure was a rebound from January’s 29.8% drop.

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For the calendar year, February 2025 orders were 8.8% higher than the average value of orders placed in the first two months of 2024. Likewise, compared to the average February, the number of units ordered was 9.6% above the first two months of 2024.

“In response to the new tariff regime announced by the Trump administration at the beginning of April, many forecasters downgraded their expectations for 2025 growth as uncertainty grew,” the report said. “Amid this environment, many major stock indices experienced declines. Since the stock market reflects expectations of future corporate profitability, the observed declines could be interpreted as waning confidence in future demand from consumers. In an alternate interpretation, companies may not be able to pass the full cost of inputs on to customers after an extended bout of inflation has increased business and consumer price sensitivity.”

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The February USMTO report also shared the following:

• Orders from contract machines shops — the largest customer segment for manufacturing technology orders — increased by almost 25% over January, but were short of the 2024 levels.
• Orders from aerospace manufacturers saw a sharp decline from January to February; however, the number of units ordered rose slightly. According to the report, this suggests that the industry is investing in machinery to address capacity constraints. Capacity utilization in the aerospace and miscellaneous transportation sector surpassed pre-Boeing machinist strike levels for the first time in February 2025.
• Orders placed by electrical equipment manufacturers were flat from January to February, but the number of units ordered nearly doubled.