MDM Premium Archives - Page 158 of 548 - Modern Distribution Management

Log In

Search
Premium Member Dashboard

All your exclusive premium content in one location.

Technology

Research: What’s Holding Distributors Back from AI Progress?

We gathered polling data and commentary from hundreds of respondents to find out. Find our analysis on the results here.
Read More

Premium Monthly

Archives

Market Insight Reports

MDM 1Q 2024 MarketPulse Report

Find a wealth of data and analysis extracted from the 1Q24 Baird-MDM Industrial Distribution Survey, including trending charts and figures for revenue and expectations, plus plenty of interesting commentary.

MDM 4Q 2023 M&A Report

The report features in-depth articles that recap the year that was 2023 in distribution dealmaking, a full rundown of every deal we covered in October-December, the latest EBITDA trading multiples and more.

MDM 4Q 2023 MarketPulse Report

Find a wealth of data and analysis extracted from the 3Q23 Baird-MDM Industrial Distribution Survey, including trending charts and figures for revenue and expectations, plus plenty of interesting commentary.

MDM 3Q 2023 MarketPulse Report

Find a wealth of data and analysis extracted from the 3Q23 Baird-MDM Industrial Distribution Survey, including trending charts and figures for revenue and expectations, plus plenty of interesting commentary.

MDM 3Q 2023 M&A Report

Our 2023 third quarter M&A report features in-depth articles on activity by Ferguson and Veritiv, and chronicles the overall quarterly pace of new deals.
Archives
Premium Events
Premium Articles
Top Distributor Sectors
3M Announces eStore
3M, St. Paul, MN, has created the 3M eStore. At the new site, customers in the 48 contiguous United States can purchase 3M products with a credit card.


We're one of the largest industrial suppliers in the world," said H.C. Shin, executive vice president, 3M Industrial and Transportation Business, "but we know that our customers aren't aware of our full product line. By opening the 3M eStore, we are placing our products in more locations where our customers can purchase them.

"In addition, if they tell us they're interested, we'll connect them directly to one of our authorized distributors to set up an ongoing relationship. Our No. 1 goal is to make sure our customers can find and purchase 3M products the way they want.


"3M eStore is, in my ...
Subscriber Only
High Court: Price Agreements Allowed

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled for the manufacturer in a pricing case that pitted the supplier against a retailer. The decision could prompt more suppliers to consider minimum resale price-setting programs.


The U.S. Supreme Court in June made it easier for manufacturers to set minimum resale prices by overturning the per se" illegality of minimum resale price agreements.


Instead, the Supreme Court ruled that challenges to minimum resale price agreements or contracts will be judged on a case-by-case basis by the "rule of reason," a more flexible legal doctrine that requires the challenger to prove price-setting was unreasonably anticompetitive and did economic harm.


"Per se" was a much stricter enforcement that assumed that minimum price setting ...
Technology
Survey: Electronic Invoicing Not Widespread

This is a summary of a recent research project on technology use conducted by Steve Epner, principal at Brown Smith Wallace consulting group.


The research project looked specifically at whether distributors in the survey sent or received electronic invoices. Less than a fifth said they did either, and even fewer sent or received a significant percentage of their invoices electronically; 150 responses were analyzed in a survey of MDM readers.


Epner also examined whether the age of the company's top management, the age of the company, its size and the markets served affected the decision to adopt this technology. In this survey, he found no significant connection between these factors and the use of electronic invoicing.


Results
Most ...
Top Distributor Sectors
SYSCO Expands to Hong Kong
SYSCO Corporation, Houston, TX, foodservice marketer and distributor, announced its subsidiary for personal care amenities and other hotel operating supplies, Guest Supply, LLC, has acquired Austin Tatum, a personal care amenity company headquartered in Hong Kong.

The acquisition of Austin Tatum represents an important step for Guest Supply's and SYSCO's expansion into the international market," said Richard J. Schnieders, SYSCO's chairman and CEO. "With a local presence and infrastructure in place, Guest Supply will now be in a position to better service the Asian properties of its U.S.-based clients as well as increase its Asian client base and the number of product categories it sells in Asia."
&nbsp ;
SYSCO distributes food products to restaurants, healthcare and ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Sonepar Subsidiary to Buy Boston Distributor
NorthEast Electrical Distributors/Eagle Electric Supply, a subsidiary of Sonepar USA, has agreed to buy Ralph Pill Electric Supply, Boston, MA.
&nbsp ;
The company was established in 1919 by Ralph Pill, a Lithuanian immigrant. His son Alfred E. Pill has served as president for the past 50 years. RPESCO has 16 locations in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. RPESCO's 2006 sales rank them as one of the largest independently-owned electrical distributors in New England and among the top 100 in the country.

They serve the residential, commercial and industrial markets.
&nbsp ;
Ralph Pill Electric is known for its panel board shop, trade-marked Bee-Line Boards," and its online lighting fixture fulfillment offering.


Don Block,&nbsp ; president of ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Private Equity Firm to Buy Univar for US$2B
Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners has offered to buy Dutch chemicals distributor Univar NV for US$2.04 billion (1.5 billion euro), a premium of about 37% to Univar's closing price July 6.

Ulysses Luxembourg, controlled by CVC, will pay 53.50 euros a share for the company, which also operates in the U.S.

Univar operates a network of more than 200 distribution centres, spread primarily across the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia. In 2006, Univar had pro forma sales of US$8 billion. ...
Technology
Activant to Buy Intuit Elipse for $100M
Activant Solutions Inc. has agreed to buy the Intuit Eclipse Distribution Management Solutions business from Intuit for $100 million in cash.
&nbsp ;
Activant has identified the wholesale distribution industry as a key vertical segment for the company's growth and expansion. The acquisition of the Intuit Eclipse business will augment its customer base and expand its technology offerings in the wholesale distribution segment.


Intuit Eclipse is a provider of business management solutions for wholesale distributors in segments ranging from electrical, plumbing, HVAC and building materials to industrial, janitorial and other durable goods supplies.


We are pleased to have Activant acquire our Intuit Eclipse business," said David Merenbach, vice president ...
Top Distributor Sectors
MDM Interview: Clean-Up of a Roll-Up

Since 1997 when the company was formed through the rollup of nine industrial general-line distributors, Industrial Distribution Group, Atlanta, GA, has seen its share of integration challenges. Charles Lingenfelter, a founding member of IDG, became president and CEO of the $550-million national distributor in November 2005. Since taking the helm, Lingenfelter has pushed hard to take the distributor from four divisions to one company.


MDM spoke with Lingenfelter recently at the Industrial Supply Association's annual meeting in Las Vegas, NV. Lingenfelter spoke of his company's progress and the work that still has to be done to make IDG's One Company plan a success.


MDM: Over the past 10 years, IDG has had a series of integration ...
Finance
Wolseley Adds Five Bolt-On Acquisitions
Wolseley plc, distributor of plumbing and heating products to contractors and a supplier of building materials, has made five bolt-on acquisitions. In a full year, these bolt-on acquisitions are expected to add about 28 million pounds to total revenue.


Since Aug. 1, 2006, the start of Wolseley's financial year, a total of 41 bolt-on acquisitions in Europe and North America have been completed. These 41 acquisitions are expected to add approximately 656 million pounds (US$1,312 million) to Group revenue in a full year.
&nbsp ;
In addition, on Sept. 25, 2006, Wolseley plc completed the acquisition of DT Group, which brings aggregate acquisition spend for the year to 1,713 million pounds (US$3,426 million).
&nbsp ;
North America
On May 14, ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Watsco to Acquire $240M ACR Group, Inc.
Watsco, Inc., Coconut Grove, FL, has agreed to buy ACR Group, Inc. for $6.75 a share in cash, a 42% premium to the 90-day average closing price. ACR is a $240 million distributor of air conditioning and heating products.

ACR, Houston, TX, operates from 54 locations serving over 12,000 air conditioning and heating contractors throughout Florida, Texas, California, Georgia, Tennessee, Arizona, Colorado, Louisiana, Nevada and New Mexico. ACR has 503 employees and distributes a full line of air conditioning and heating equipment and related parts and supplies of 20,000 SKUs.

ACR ranked #7 in Supply House Times magazine's 2007 list of the top 50 HVAC distributors in the U.S.

Watsco is an independent distributor of air conditioning, heating and refrigeration ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Regal Beloit to Buy Tecumseh’s Electric Motor, Blower Businesses
Regal Beloit Corporation, Beloit, WI, has agreed to buy the electric motor and blower businesses of Tecumseh Products Company. Regal Beloit will acquire the assets of the FASCO Residential/Commercial operations and the stock of the FASCO Asia/Pacific operations of Tecumseh (FASCO). Tecumseh's FASCO Automotive/Specialty business is not part of this transaction.

The FASCO businesses that Regal Beloit is acquiring manufacture and market motors and blower systems for air moving applications including alternative fuels systems, water heaters and HVAC systems. Regal Beloit expects the acquired businesses to add $290 million of sales in 2008.

The transaction is valued at $220 million in cash.

Regal Beloit is a manufacturer of mechanical and electrical motion ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Rexel Makes Three Acquisitions
Rexel, the Paris-based distributor of electrical supplies, has made three acquisitions in Belgium, the United Kingdom and the U.S. The moves follow Rexel's bolt-on acquisition strategy aimed at broadening its footprint in Europe and North America.
&nbsp ;
U.S.: Tri-Valley Electric Supply
Tri-Valley Electric Supply is an electrical and datacom distributor that serves commercial and industrial segments in Arizona. Tri-Valley posted 2006 sales of US$5.5 million (& euro; 4M) and has 15 employees.
&nbsp ;
Belgium: Boutet
Boutet is a distributor of electrical supplies in Eastern Belgium with sales of & euro; 18 million (US$24.5M) in 2006 and 50 employees. Through this acquisition, Rexel Belgium, which already has 26 branches, will further ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Praxair Buys Wilson Welding & Medical Gases
Praxair Distribution, Inc., Danbury, CT, a subsidiary of Praxair, Inc., has acquired Wilson Welding & Medical Gases, Warren, MI. Wilson is a distributor of industrial, medical, specialty gases and related equipment and supplies.

Wilson operates a cylinder filling plant and retail store in Warren, retail stores in Macomb and Pontiac, and a beverage CO2 business in Flint, MI. The business generated sales of $20 million in 2006 and has 72 employees.

The addition of Wilson to our existing network in Southeastern Michigan further strengthens Praxair's ability to serve customers throughout the Great Lakes region," said Praxair Distribution President Wayne Yakich.

Yakich said Praxair looks forward to building on the strong business foundation established by ...
Technology
NetSuite Prepares for IPO
NetSuite Inc., San Mateo, CA, a vendor of on-demand, integrated business management application suites that provide ERP, CRM and e-commerce functionality for small and medium-sized businesses and divisions of large businesses, has filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on its intended initial public offering of its common stock.
&nbsp ;
The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the offering have not yet been ...
Finance
Actuant Buys BH Electronics for $30M
Actuant Corporation, Milwaukee, WI, has acquired BH Electronics, Munford, TN, for $30 million in cash.
&nbsp ;
BHE produces dashboard control panels and electronic assembly systems, primarily for the marine market. BHE generated $35 million in sales in 2006, and has 450 employees.
&nbsp ;
BHE will operate within Actuant's Electrical Segment. Actuant has sale of over $1.4 ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Airgas Expands in Southern California
Airgas, Inc., Radnor, PA, has acquired Lehner & Martin, Inc, a Santa Ana, CA-based industrial gas and welding supply distributor with branches in Placentia, Gardena, and Chino, CA. L & M had sales of more than $13 million in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007.
&nbsp ;
The operations have been integrated into Airgas West, one of the regional companies that make up Airgas' distribution business.
&nbsp ;
The transaction was the fifth acquisition completed since the start of Airgas' fiscal 2008 on April 1, 2007, with acquired sales now topping $378 million, including the Linde U.S. packaged gas acquisition announced earlier.
&nbsp ;
Airgas, Inc. is a U.S. distributor of industrial, medical, and specialty gases, and hardgoods, such as welding equipment and supplies. ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Parker Hannifin Buys Mitos
Parker Hannifin Corporation, Cleveland, OH, supplier of motion and control technologies, has acquired Mitos Technologies, Inc.&nbsp ;
&nbsp ;
Mitos manufactures fluid-handling products and systems designed specifically to meet the high purity requirements of the biotech industry, including tubing and hose, valves, pumps and molded components.&nbsp ;
&nbsp ;
Mitos had revenues of $5.5 million in 2006 and employs 40 people at its headquarters in Phoenixville, PA.
<br ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Carrier Corp., Supplier of HVAC Products, to Buy Distributor
Carrier Corp. has agreed to buy E.B. Ward & Company/Valair, a Carrier distributor of residential, light commercial and commercial products. Carrier, a unit of United Technologies Corp., is a supplier with 200 locations in more than 20 U.S. states and Canada.
&nbsp ;
The acquisition of E.B. Ward and Valair will strengthen our rapidly expanding sales and distribution network in California," said Geraud Darnis, president of Carrier Corp. "This will enable Carrier to serve our customers directly in this large and strategically important market."


E.B. Ward and Valair, with 140 employees and combined sales of $150 million, serve Carrier customers in Northern California and parts of Nevada.


Carrier Corp., headquartered in Farmington, CT, is a provider of ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Ultratape Industries Sold to Delphon
Salem, OR-based Ultratape Industries Inc., a manufacturer of adhesive tapes used in cleanroom environments, has been sold to Hayward, CA-based Delphon Industries LLC.
&nbsp ;
Ultratape produces pressure sensitive adhesive tapes for use in semiconductor cleanrooms, labs, pharmaceutical manufacturing and other particle-free and static-free environments. ...
Subscriber Only
Conference Board Employment Trends Index Continues Decline In March
The Conference Board Employment Trends Index fell again in March. The index now stands at 90.1, decreasing 2.3% from the February revised figure of 92.2, and down 22.1% from a year ago.
 
While we see a continued sharp fall in the ETI, the decline was not as strong as in the previous four months, suggesting that the most intense stage of job losses may be behind us, said Gad Levanon, senior economist at The Conference Board. "However, the drops in each of the eight components of the ETI in March signal that many more jobs will disappear over the next several months."
 
The 20-month-long decline in the Employment Trends Index is seen in all eight of its components, most notably over the past six months in temporary-help hires and part-time ...
Subscriber Only
Chicago Fed Midwest Manufacturing Index Declines 0.4% In February
The Chicago Fed Midwest Manufacturing Index decreased 0.4% in February to a seasonally adjusted level of 83.8 (2002 = 100). Revised data show the index declined 6.7% in January, to 84.2.
 
The Federal Reserve Board's industrial production index for manufacturing fell 0.7% in February. Regional output in February was down 22.2% from a year earlier - lower than the 13.8% decline in national output.
 
The region's steel sector output moved down 4.7% in February after declining 6.2% in January. The nation's steel output was down 2.7% in February. Regional steel output dropped 30.8% from its February 2008 level, and national steel output fell 21.2%.
 
The Midwest's machinery sector output decreased 4.2% in February after moving ...
Subscriber Only
Manufacturing Contracts in March
Manufacturing contracted again in March for the 14th consecutive month, according to the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business.

The Institute for Supply Management report read: "The rapid decline in manufacturing appears to have moderated somewhat, as the PMI remains in the mid-30s for a third consecutive month. While the PMI is slightly higher in March, the New Orders Index offers greater encouragement, as it rose above the 40-percent mark for the first time in seven months.

"The Production Index showed no benefit as yet from the improvement in new orders, as it continued to decline at a rate similar to March. The rate of decline in the Employment Index slowed slightly, and the same held true for the Prices Index. A special question was asked ...
Subscriber Only
ISM Report: 34% of Respondents Expect Their Company to Benefit From Stimulus
The Institute for Supply Management added what it called "special questions" to the end of this month's Report on Business on expectations regarding the Economic Stimulus Package.

ISM said the questions were structured to determine if respondents believed their industry and organization would benefit from the program as they understand it.

Of all respondents, 36 percent indicate that their industry will benefit. The industries with a majority of respondents indicating they expect to benefit are: Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Primary Metals; and Machinery.

Thirty-four percent of respondents indicate that their company will benefit from the ...
Subscriber Only
New Orders for Manufactured Goods Up 1.8% in February
New orders for manufactured goods in February, up following six consecutive monthly decreases, increased $6.1 billion or 1.8% to $352.2 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau in a preliminary report. This followed a 3.5% January decrease.
 
This data is an update to the Advance data released March 25. This report provides more details on the month's performance.
 
Excluding transportation, new orders increased 1.6%. Shipments, down seven consecutive months, decreased $0.4 billion or 0.1% to $365.9 billion. This was the longest streak of consecutive monthly decreases since the series was first published on a NAICS basis in 1992 and followed a 2.6% January decrease.
 
Unfilled orders, down five consecutive months, decreased $10.7 billion or 1.4% to ...
Subscriber Only
How Did Manufacturing & Construction Fare in March Employment Reports?
The employment numbers out today from the Bureau of Labor Statistics are not great - we have now hit 8.5% unemployment nationally. Since December 2007, the U.S. has lost 5.1 million jobs, with two-thirds of that decrease happening in the past five months. Job losses were widespread.
 
Wholesale trade saw a decline of 31,000 in March, with nearly all the decline in durable goods.
 
How did manufacturing and construction fare?
 
According to data found here, manufacturing employment in March fell by 161,000, with widespread losses among component industries. Factory employment fell by 1 million over the past six months. The largest decreases in March were in fabricated ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Valley National Gases Launches Safety Products Catalog
Valley National Gases, Independence, OH, has launched a new line of safety products through the VNG Safety Products Catalog.
 
"With 12,000 items available, our customers now have access to a full selection of quality safety items for virtually any safety related need," Jerry McGlumphy, product manager/hardgoods for Valley National Gases said.
 
Valley National Gases is a distributor of industrial gases, safety supplies, first aid supplies, industrial supplies, gloves, safety glasses and medications. The company operates over 96 locations in 18 states, servicing a multitude of industrial segments from fabrication, to health care, energy to university/research servicing customers in the Industrial and Residential ...
Research & Analytics
Dell Computer Recognizes Value of Selling Through Distributors
Dell Computer Inc. seems to recognize the value of wholesaler-distributors in expanding its reach in the small and medium-sized business markets. The build-to-order computer giant will be working with Ingram Micro Inc. and Tech Data Corp. to target new customers in those markets, according to this article at itchannelplanet.com.
 
At first, Dell will provide the distributors with desktops and a few notebooks from its Vostro line, as well as some monitors and limited hardware warranties. Down the road, the computer-maker may expand the products offered through distribution.
 
Ingram Micro President Keith Bradley said in <a ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Baird Survey: Outlook More Positive Than Current Trends
The first quarter Baird Industrial Distribution Survey, from Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc., indicates revenues were down significantly during the quarter, with both the six-month and full-year forecasts slightly better than current trends.
 
Pricing and gross profit margins appear to be holding relatively steady. The survey also shows 68% of respondents expect some level of benefit to their business as a result of U.S. Government stimulus efforts.
 
Baird's Industrial Distribution Research Team, led by Senior Research Analyst David Manthey, CFA, collected feedback on first quarter results from nearly 300 independent and captive distributors with combined annual revenue in excess of $40 billion. Key survey findings include:
 
·   ...
Research & Analytics
Survey: Two-thirds of Respondents Will Negotiate More SPAs
A recent industry survey looked at Special Pricing Allowances. According to the survey by Allen Ray Associates and Channel Marketing Group, about a third of distributor respondents have more than 250 individual SPA, customer-defined, agreements. Another 13.6% had more than 100 SPAs.
 
About two-thirds say that the number of SPAs they negotiate will increase. Just 9.1% feel that they will eventually have fewer SPA agreements.
 
Distributors in the survey ranked SPAs as a 7.64 on a scale of 1-10 in importance to their current and future profitability.
 
"SPAs can be a competitive advantage for manufacturers and distributors to take market share when appropriately used," Allen Ray says. "The key is distributors claiming their funds to ensure ...
Subscriber Only
Canada Industrial Product Price Index Up in February
In February, Canada's Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI) rose 0.4% compared with January, due to both the depreciation of the Canadian dollar against the US dollar and increases in the prices for precious metals and petroleum products, according to Statistics Canada. The Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI) advanced 1.7 % compared with January, pushed up by rising crude oil prices.
 
The IPPI rose 0.4% in February, a modest upturn following the stability in the index in January and the declines of 2.7% and 2.2% recorded in November and December respectively.
 
Motor vehicles and other transport equipment rose 1.1% as a result of the depreciation of the Canadian dollar in relation to its US counterpart. The prices for primary metal ...
Top Distributor Sectors
Responding to Delayed Hospital Spending, Cardinal Health Cuts Costs
Drug distributor Cardinal Health, Dublin, OH, says that when it spins off its Clinical and Medical Products businesses later this year it will reduce its global workforce by 800 over six months and eliminate an additional 500 positions through normal attrition and not filling open roles. The distributor also plans to implement cost control measures and reductions in discretionary spending.
 
The actions are in response to a "delay in hospital capital spending" specifically, and the decline in the global economy generally, according a press release.
 
Cardinal said back in January that the spending delay is only a "temporary concern," according to an article at WSJ.com.
 
Cardinal Health, Inc. is a $91 billion global ...
Top Distributor Sectors
New-Home Sales Climb: Has the Market Hit Bottom?
For the first time in seven months, the Commerce Department reported that new-home sales increased 4.7% in February to a seasonally adjusted rate of 337,000 units. It's still a long way from where sales were, but Joe Robson, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, is taking it as a sign that the market is finally hitting bottom, according to a statement posted to NAHB.org.
 
One possible contributor to the upswing: Prices finally may be low enough to draw buyers back into the marketplace for new homes. According to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released on Tuesday, prices for new homes continued to fall in January to lows not seen since 2003 (based on the composite indexes). The 20-city composite index has fallen 19% since January 2008; it ...
Subscriber Only
Commentary: A Positive Spin on News in a Negative Time
In a short time, we have grown accustomed to reading (and in my case, writing) articles and headlines filled with words like, decrease, "decline" and "fall." That's why when, as reported this month, housing starts saw a slight increase, and new orders for durable goods went up, the words "unexpectedly" and "surprising" started to appear. Confidence went up, at least a little - badly needed in our battered economy.
 
That said, as soon as the word "increase" and all its synonyms came back, however briefly, there were plenty of economists and analysts ready to moderate our excitement that things might finally be hitting rock bottom. "The modest signs of stability in the U.S. economy are ...
Economic Trends
Global Report: Mexico Hit by Export Slowdown to U.S.
This is part of an MDM series of articles looking at growth opportunities globally.
 
The remaining optimism at the beginning of the global financial and credit crisis very often came from emerging markets. Though those markets' growth slowed, they still saw growth, contrary to the negative trends seen in the U.S. Growth forecasts for Brazil, for example, were revised downward, but remained positive, and India continued to see investment growth.
 
And another emerging market - Mexico - continued to steadily plod along even as its trading partners suffered from a barrage of bad news. The picture has since darkened for many of these countries.


Until a few months ago, it was believed that the emerging markets, and ...
Subscriber Only
GDP Shrinks 6.3% in Fourth Quarter 2008
Real gross domestic product - the output of goods and services produced by labor and property in the U.S. - decreased at an annual rate of 6.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, (from the third quarter to the fourth quarter), according to final estimates released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP decreased 0.5 percent.
 
These GDP estimates are based on more complete source data than were available for the preliminary estimates issued last month. In the preliminary estimates, the decrease in real GDP was 6.2 percent.
 
The decrease in real GDP in the fourth quarter primarily reflected negative contributions from exports, personal consumption expenditures, equipment and software, and residential fixed investment that ...
Subscriber Only
Monthly Wholesale Trade: January 2009
January 2009 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers' sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $326.1 billion, down 2.9 percent from the revised December level and were down 15.4 percent from January 2008, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
 
January sales of durable goods were down 6.5 percent from last month and were down 17.3 percent from a year ago. Compared with last month, sales of machinery, equipment, and supplies were down 10.8 percent. Sales of nondurable goods were up 0.3 percent from last month, but were down 13.7 percent from last year. Sales of chemicals and allied products were down 4.9 percent from last month, while sales of drugs and druggists' ...
Subscriber Only
U.S. Conference Board, Canadian Composite Indexes Decline at Start of Year
U.S.
Each of the three economic indexes provided by The Conference Board posted declines of 0.4 percent for the month. The Conference Board Leading Economic Index February decline follows a slight increase in January. Between August 2008 and February 2009, the index fell 2.1 percent, faster than the decline of 1.6 percent (a -3.1 percent annual rate) for the previous six months. In addition, the weaknesses among the leading indicators have remained widespread. The Leading Economic Index for the U.S. now stands at 98.5, continuing a downward trend that began in July 2007.

Six of the indicators that make up the LEI increased in February, including the interest rate spread, index of supplier deliveries (vendor performance), building permits, real money supply, ...
Subscriber Only
New Orders for Durable Goods Go Up in February
New orders for manufactured durable goods in February increased $5.5 billion or 3.4% to $165.6 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced in the advance report on Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories and Orders. This increase follows six consecutive monthly decreases, including a 7.3% January decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 3.9%. Excluding defense, new orders increased 1.7%.
 
Cliff Waldman, economist for the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI, said that the "welcome turn in big ticket demand" should be "interpreted with caution," though he does point out that it may indicate that the U.S. is close to or at the bottom of the business cycle.
 
"The modest signs of stability in the U.S. economy are early and could be ...

Investment Banking Directory

Work with a banking partner that knows your business. Get detailed information on investment banks with expertise in the wholesale distribution industry.

Learn More
Featured Content

3 Ways Distributors Can Make Better Inventory Decisions

Discover how a leading distributor has revolutionized inventory policies and supply chain planning to…

SHIFT 2023 Playbook

As distribution leaders constantly seek educational resources on business transformation, technology optimization and talent…

Data-Driven Decisions: Opportunities and Challenges in the Data Revolution

Distributors of all sizes and in all verticals are ambitiously investing in data capabilities…

Elevate Your Sales Game: The Ultimate CRM Playbook for Distributors

Customer expectations are evolving, buying behavior is shifting, and competition has become more intense….
Go to Library

Market Prospector

  • Build strategic sales plans.

  • Determine market and demand.

  • Create smart prospect lists. 

Turn your sales data into actionable data with Market Prospector.  A web-based SAAS tool that gives you insight into your market, your territories, your customers and new prospects too. 

Learn More

Sign Up for the MDM Update Newsletter

Our daily newsletter is your best source for news and trends in the wholesale distribution industry.

Sign Up

Get the MDM Update Newsletter

Wholesale distribution news and trends delivered right to your inbox.

Sign-up for our free newsletter and get:

  • Up-to-date news in a quick-to-read format
  • Free access to webcasts, podcasts and live events
  • Exclusive whitepapers, research and reports
  • And more!

Register for full access

By providing your email, you agree to receive announcements from us and our partners for our newsletter, events, surveys, and partner resources per MDM Terms & Conditions. You can withdraw consent at any time.

Learn More about Custom Reports

Request a Market Prospector Demo

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.