ARLINGTON, VA -- US manufacturing technology orders totaled $372.5 million in April, down 26.6% from March and down 12.6% from April 2012.

Orders year-to-date are now $1.65 billion, down 7% compared with 2012, according to AMT - The Association For Manufacturing Technology.

These numbers and all data in this report are based on the totals of actual data reported by companies participating in the USMTO program.

“Order totals leveled off to the averages we’ve seen so far this year, but they aren’t out of line with analyst predictions,” said Douglas K. Woods, AMT President. “Likewise, the Purchasing Manager’s Index recently dropped below 50 – indicating contraction within manufacturing – but hiring continued to expand throughout the industry. With auto sales strong, the housing industry showing signs of a true rebound, and consumer confidence on the rise, we expect to continue seeing steady but slower activity.”  

The United States Manufacturing Technology Orders (USMTO) report, compiled by the trade association representing the production and distribution of manufacturing technology, provides regional and national U.S. orders data of domestic and imported machine tools and related equipment. Analysis of manufacturing technology orders provides a leading economic indicator as manufacturing industries invest in capital metalworking equipment to increase capacity and improve productivity.      

Northeast Region. Manufacturing technology orders in the Northeast Region in April totaled $72.29 million, unchanged from March’s $72.27 million but up 4.4% when compared with the April 2012 figure. At $251.08 million, 2013 year-to-date is down 4% when compared with 2012 at the same time.

Southeast Region. Southeast Region manufacturing technology orders totaled $35.16 million in April, down 3.3% from the $36.37 million total for March but 1.0% higher than the total for April 2012. The year-to-date total of $139.10 million is 16.3% lower than the comparable figure for 2012.    

North Central-East Region. At $71.30 million, April manufacturing technology orders in the North Central-East Region were down 50.9% when compared with the $145.12 million total for March and down 34.6% when compared with April a year ago. With a year-to-date total of $434.94 million, 2013 is down 2.8% when compared with 2012 at the same time.                                 

North Central-West Region. Orders totaled $69.88 million, 34.5% lower than March’s $106.65 million and down 10.3% when compared with April 2012. At $330.06 million, the 2013 year-to-date total is 2.6% higher than the comparable figure for 2012.       

South Central Region. Orders totaled $59.6 million, 10.8% lower than March’s $66.85 million and down 30.7% when compared with April 2012. At $257.42 million, the 2013 year-to-date total is 28.3% less than the comparable figure for 2012.       

West Region. Orders stood at $64.27 million, down 19.6% from the March total of $79.95 million but 30.0% higher than the figure for April 2012. The $238.3 million year-to-date total is 9.1% above the total for the same period in 2012.

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