July 2022 U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $173.2 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 down 1.5 percent from June’s $175.9 million and up 6.7 percent when compared with the $162.3 million reported for July 2021. With a year-to-date total of $1.2 billion, 2022 is up 7.7 percent when compared to the same time 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.

Costikyan Jarvis, President of Jarvis Cutting Tools, spoke on demand by saying, “The July 2022 cutting tool results continue to show demand is still well off 2019 levels. 2022 dollar volume is still running about 15 percent lower than 2019, and when inflation is considered, total unit production is even lower. This data is supported by 2022 vehicle sales being around 13 million units versus 17 million units in 2019 and the lower production in commercial aerospace.

“Expect to see improving cutting tool demand well into 2023. Improvement will be driven with increased aerospace production (Boeing reported that 737 production returned to 31-per- month rates in June) and a reduction in automotive supply chain issues. Another good indicator is North America’s premier manufacturing technology show, IMTS. The show returns this month, and attendee numbers and interest will be a good gauge for future demand.”

“The slowdown in shipments seen in the second quarter of 2022 continued into July, although they remain well above last year’s totals,” said Mark Killion, Director of US industries at Oxford Economics. “This is in line with the deceleration recently seen in new orders and a moderating pace of activity in key client markets.”

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.