Canadian manufacturers of power transmission/motion control products experienced another drop in sales while U.S. manufacturers experienced a slight increase in May 2009 according to sales data released by the Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA). Confidence in the market (as measured on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being most optimistic) remained the same this month, holding a current negative position between 4.3 and 4.8.
U.S. manufacturers’ sales rose slightly by 0.3% in May 2009 when compared to April 2009. Sales in May 2009 fell 26.5% compared to the same period last year. Orders in May 2009 decreased by 2.8% over April 2009 orders.
Canadian manufacturers’ sales were down 6.9% compared to April 2009. Sales were down 29.4% when compared to the same period last year.
Product-by-product sales between April 2009 and May 2009 reflect the change in sales experienced by U.S. and Canadian manufacturers.Five of nine product categories for U.S. manufacturers – shaft couplings, unmounted bearings, clutches & brakes, variable speed drives and mounted bearings- posted sales gains. For Canadian manufacturers, five product categories posted sales gains – mounted bearings, unmounted bearings, shaft couplings, variable speed drives and positioning systems/linear motion products.
The Market Outlook Report is published monthly. Year-end data for 2007 and 2008 is available in a complete report.The monthly data is available by subscription via e-mail or mail. Order online at www.ptda.org/store. PTDA members may download the report at no charge through the PTDA Web site.
