March 2022 U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $196.4 million, 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 17.2 percent from February’s $167.6 million and up 10.6 percent when compared with the $177.6 million reported for March 2021. With a year-to-date total of $523.9 million, 2022 is up 11 percent when compared to the same period in 2021.
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.
“The total sales volume for March 2022 is the highest total since October of 2019; this is a welcome volume,” said Brad Lawton, Chairman of the AMT Cutting Tool Product Group. “However, we must ask: What part of this volume is the result of inflation? At the recent MFG Meeting presented by AMT, the presence of inflation in the economy was clear but not expected to develop into a recession. The cutting tool industry will positively evaluate the future and plan accordingly for a soft landing.”
Alan Richter, editor-at-large of Cutting Tool Engineering, also commented on inflation, saying, “While challenges to the metal cutting sector remain, it's encouraging to see that the dollar total for U.S. cutting tool orders in March 2022 is at a level not seen since prior to the pandemic, in October 2019. Some of that is the result of inflation, as the cost of carbide and other tool materials increase along with the price to produce and transport tools, but cutting tool consumption looks likely to continue to rise throughout the year as manufacturers continue to ship more durable goods. I'm looking forward to experiencing a lot of positive energy at IMTS in September.”
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.