The monthly Executive Economic Summary published by the Industrial Heating Equipment Association showed slowing growth in November. Nonetheless, the report suggests that the economy will continue to grow steadily in 2019 despite a moderation of growth rates.
Here are a few highlights from the report which is made available in its entirety to IHEA members each month:
Indexes moving up included:
- Car and light truck sales have increased slightly. This index was expected to drop significantly earlier this year and never did.
- Housing starts continued to grow but more slowly than in previous months.
- Steel consumption continues to be strong.
- Metal prices also remain steady or increasing.
- Capital investment — up.
- Credit index — also up.
Those indices that retreated include:
- Capacity utilization. Still slightly below 80 which is where economists like to see it. Nonetheless, this number is still quite high compared to recent months.
- Purchasing managers index also slipped but continues to show significant growth.
- Durable goods orders — down
- Factory goods orders — down
- Transportation index — down
Although a number of indexes were down, almost all continue to show growth or slight levels of economic contraction.
The 12-page report dives deeply into the above 11 indexes dedicating a complete page to each index.
The complete report is available to IHEA member companies. To obtain a copy of the report, please contact Anne Goyer, Executive Vice President of the Industrial Heating Equipment Association (www.ihea.org). You can email Anne by clicking here.
