Six times in the last seven months, the manufacturing industry has enjoyed an increase in sales. Following November reports, the sector saw in increase of 1.0% with total sales bumping up to $50.5 billion. Transportation equipment and machinery industries drove the gains.
Sales actually grew in 11 of 21 manufacturing industries (58%) with durable goods showing the largest percent increase at 2.9%. As an indicator of a rise in the total volume, manufacturing sales increased by 0.7%.
Aerospace
Among all manufacturing sectors, no one owns a bigger trade surplus than aerospace. Aerospace chipped in $86 billion to the U.S. economy in export sales in 2011. The positive export balance on that number reaches $47.1 billion, which resulted from sending 49 percent of all that production to other countries.
Clearly, U.S. aerospace production is attractive to foreign countries due to its skilled workforce, efficient distribution and strong support.
Transportation and Machinery on the Rise
The fastest growing sector is the transportation equipment industry (6.1% up to $9.5 billion). Again, growth in this sector was driven by aerospace in addition to traditional motor vehicle products. With all this in mind, it’s important to note that large increases and decreases are common in this volatile market.
Machining service gains have been realized in four of the previous 11 months. The most recent reports showed a 5.4% jump to $3.0 billion.
Both of these fast-growing sectors require a highly-skilled workforce, which isn’t always easy to find, even in an economy with a relatively high unemployment rate. That’s a critical factor to keep in mind if you’re considering dipping your toes in these waters. It’s one more aspect of your business that must be carefully planned before you jump.
What you really need to prepare for new territory is a skilled and experienced partner. As a top machining service provider, PDS can help. Contact us today and let us know about your plans.