Home About PTDA Press Releases

Distributors’ and Manufacturers’ Month-to-Month Sales Drop According to PTDA’s April 2007 Market Outlook Report Data

Chicago, Ill. -- July 5, 2007 -- The Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA) today released April 2007 month-end trend data for distributors and manufacturers of power transmission/motion control (PT/MC) products.

Following last month’s drop in sales, U.S. distributors’ sales of PT/MC products continue to decline, dropping 2.5 percent from March to April.  Year-to-year comparisons remain positive with sales in April 2007 coming in 8.8 percent higher than in April 2006.  Sales in accounts receivable collection, however, rose 1.4 compared to March.   The confidence index for U.S. distributors remained unchanged at 6.6 for April 2007 (on a 10-point scale).

Canadian distributors’ sales in PT/MC products on a month-to-month comparison mirrored the performance of their U.S. counterparts.  Sales continued to drop with a 3.5 percent decrease in sales when compared to March 2007, but year-to-year comparisons were positive with a 4.0 percent increase over sales in April of 2006.  Following a slight last month, days sales in account receivables continued to climb 3.7 percent over April 2007.  For the first time this year, the confidence level of Canadian distributors in March went up, increasing 0.5 points to 6.3 for April 2007 (on a 10-point scale).

After two-months of sales growth, U.S. manufacturers’ sales fell 3.6 percent from March to April 2007.  Sales growth over the same period last year followed this trend, with an 11.1 percent drop in sales.   The confidence level of U.S. manufactures is stable, dropping only 0.1 points (to 5.4 on a 10-point scale)

Canadian manufacturers’ month-to-month sales matched the performance of their U.S. counterparts.  Following a short-lived increase in sales in March, sales went down 4.3 percent in April 2007.  Compared to the same time last year, however, sales grew 7.0 percent.  The confidence level of Canadian manufacturers also continued to fall steadily, dropping 0.1 point (to 5.2 on a 10-point scale) in April 2007.

Between March and April 2007, the number of product categories experiencing sales growth decreased for both U.S. and Canadian manufacturers.  U.S. manufacturers reported sales growth in only three of nine categories; Canadian manufacturers reported sales growth in four of nine categories.  For U.S. manufacturers, only three categories — standard industrial motors, variable speed drives, and clutches & brakes — showed an increase in sales.  Slightly less than half of Canadian manufacturers’ products experienced positive growth in sales — clutches & brakes, unmounted bearings, variable speed drives, and positioning systems & linear motion products.

U.S. Manufacturer Percent Change in Product Sales (March 2007 vs. April 2007)

Canadian Manufacturer Percent Change in Product Sales (March 2007 vs. April 2007)

The Market Outlook Report is published monthly by the Power Transmission Distributors Association.  The full report includes month-to-month and year-to-year changes in sales, inventory and accounts receivables data for U.S. and Canadian distributors, as well as a general confidence index.  U.S. and Canadian manufacturer data includes a confidence index, as well as sales and order trends for mounted bearings, unmounted bearings, standard industrial motors, variable speed drives, positioning systems/linear motion products, gear products, clutches and breaks, and shaft couplings, and mechanical drive systems and other PT products. 

The report is available by annual subscription via e-mail or mail by contacting +1.312.516.2100 or may be ordered online at www.ptda.org/store; PTDA members may download the report at no charge through the PTDA web site at www.ptda.org/MOR.

Founded in 1960, the Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA) is the leading association for the industrial power transmission/motion control (PT/MC) distribution channel.  A U.S.-based trade association, PTDA represents 216 power transmission/motion control distributor firms with over 3,500 locations throughout North America and 13 other countries, as well as 200 manufacturers that supply the PT/MC industry. 

PTDA is dedicated to providing exceptional networking, targeted education, relevant information and leading-edge business tools to help distributors and manufacturers meet marketplace demands competitively and profitably.  For more information, visit www.ptda.org.