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26 Managing Customers Through Economic Cycles

1. PMI (Purchasing Managers’ Index)
2. New Orders
3. Production
4. Employment
5. Supplier Deliveries
6. Inventories
7. Customers’ Inventories
8. Prices
9. Backlog of Orders
10. Exports
11. Imports

These metrics are tracked by current month and previous
month. They are also tracked by a percentage point change.
In addition, there is an indication signifying the direction
of the metric – e.g. contracting, expanding, increasing,
decreasing – and a metric as to the rate of change as well
as the number of months that it has been moving in its
current direction (see Table 2.1). The survey also tracks
overall economy metrics and the manufacturing sector itself
with similar indexes.

The survey also offers narratives such as:

PERFORMANCE BY INDUSTRY

None of the 18 manufacturing industries reported growth in
March. The industries reporting contraction in March – listed
in order – are: Fabricated Metal Products; Textile Mills;
Machinery; Chemical Products; Primary Metals; Printing &
Related Support Activities; Transportation Equipment; Plastics
& Rubber Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; Wood
Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components;
Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Furniture & Related
Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Paper Products;
Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Computer & Electronic
Products; and Apparel, Leather & Allied Products.