Orders had a small decline in 2019, consistent with market forecasts for the industry.

December 2019 U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $187.2 million, according to the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute (USCTI) and the Association For Manufacturing Technology (AMT). This total, as reported by companies participating in the Cutting Tool Market Report collaboration, was down 1 percent from November's $189.1 million and down 1 percent when compared with the $189.1 million reported for December 2018. With a year-to-date total of $2.4 billion, 2019 is down 1 percent when compared with 2018.

These numbers and all data in this report are based on the totals reported by the companies participating in the CTMR program. The totals here represent the majority of the U.S. market for cutting tools.

According to Bret Tayne, President of USCTI, “The cutting tool industry ended the year with a small decline from 2018, which was consistent with the forecasts that were produced for our industry. Despite some signs of continued slowness into the first quarter of this year, there are rays of optimism in various reports, and there may be an opportunity for rebound as discreet problems (Coronavirus, commercial aviation issues, etc.) recede.”

“Orders for cutting tools fell at the end of 2019, in line with continued weakness in key manufacturing sectors such as aerospace and motor vehicles. Yet December’s decline in orders was moderate as compared to previous months, down 1 percent from November, which leaves them down 1 percent for all of 2019 over 2018,” said Mark Killion, Director of U.S. Industry at Oxford Economics.

The Cutting Tool Market Report is jointly compiled by AMT and USCTI, two trade associations representing the development, production, and distribution of cutting tool technology and products. It provides a monthly statement on U.S. manufacturers’ consumption of the primary consumable in the manufacturing process – the cutting tool. Analysis of cutting tool consumption is a leading indicator of both upturns and downturns in U.S. manufacturing activity, as it is a true measure of actual production levels.

Historical data for the Cutting Tool Market Report is available dating back to January 2012. This collaboration of AMT and USCTI is the first step in the two associations working together to promote and support U.S.-based manufacturers of cutting tool technology.

The graph below includes the 12-month moving average for the durable goods shipments and cutting tool orders. These values are calculated by taking the average of the most recent 12 months and plotting them over time.

Source: Industrial Distributioin