The third quarter of 2012 marked the 10th consecutive quarter of expansion in the power transmission/motion control industry according to the PTDA Business Index. The index produced a reading of 50.3, which represents a deceleration from the second-quarter reading of 54.2.
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Both distributors and manufacturers reported decelerated sales growth compared with the last quarter.
(Note: The index reading indicates the rate of change compared with the previous period. For example, a reading of 50 indicates no change from the prior period while readings above 50 indicate growth and below 50 indicate contraction. The further the index is above or below 50 suggests a faster or slower rate of change.)
The table below provides an overview of the results from 3Q2012 index and a comparison with 2Q2012.
|
PTDA Quarterly Business Index |
||
|
|
2Q2012 |
3Q2012 |
|
Business Activity |
50.1 |
48.2 |
|
New Orders |
49.2 |
45.0 |
|
Employment |
64.2 |
59.5 |
|
Supplier Deliveries |
53.2 |
48.6 |
|
Inventories |
66.9 |
65.9 |
|
Prices |
65.7 |
71.2 |
|
Backlog |
54.8 |
41.8 |
|
Overall PTDA Index |
54.2 |
50.3 |
PTDA members expect 2013 to be another year of growth, with an average forecast of 6 percent. Notably, 83 percent of distributors and 78 percent of manufacturers surveyed expect positive growth in 2013.
The PTDA Business Index full report, including data for the U.S. and Canada, is available through the PTDA website.
