January 2020 US cutting tool orders up 5% from December 2019

Totaling $196.5 million, January 2020 U.S. cutting tool consumption was up from Dec. 2019, according to the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute (USCTI) and AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology. This total, as reported by companies participating in the Cutting Tool Market Report collaboration, was up 5% from December's $187.2 million and down 8.6% when compared with the $215.1 million reported for January 2019.

According to Brad Lawton, chairman of AMT’s Cutting Tool Product Group, “What is uncertainty? For the cutting tool industry, it could be slowly declining sales volumes for at least the last half of 2019, all international markets declining with the U.S. being the last to follow the pattern, stock market volatility, an election year and COVID-19! Did I miss anything? Now that is uncertainty, welcome to the new decade!”

“Starting the 2020 calendar year behind January 2019 is not a surprise based on last year’s strong start and the economic headwinds facing the market today. The metalworking industry is feeling the negative effects of a flat automotive market and an aerospace market that has virtually halted the entire supply chain of the 737MAX. IHS forecasts have warned of a drop in consumption in the first quarter and this has unfortunately come to fruition,” says Tom Haag, president of SGS Kyocera.