November 2022 U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $194.4 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 down 3.1 percent from October’s $200.6 million and up 20.8 percent when compared with the $160.9 million reported for November 2021. With a year-to-date total of $2.0 billion, 2022 is up 10.4 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.
“Cutting tool consumption is on pace with durable goods production, a positive sign that supply chain issues and shortages of raw materials are easing,” said Jack Burley, Chairman of AMT’s Cutting Tool Product Group and Committee. “Despite fears of a recession, cutting tool usage has not been affected so far, and industrial production capacity remains steady.”
Costikyan Jarvis, President of Jarvis Cutting Tools, also spoke on durable goods, “The GDP measures durable goods, non-durable goods, and services, so is it possible that the forecasted recession will largely avoid durable goods. The 12-month CTMR average is only 90 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Commercial aerospace production is still recovering, and the automotive market, after only selling 13.7 million units, has the possibility to stay flat.”
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.