Cutting Tool Orders Fall in November

Real cutting tool orders were $153.7 million in November 2015. This was the lowest level for cutting tool orders since December 2012, and the order total in November was about 15% below the average level since 2012 according to the CTMR report. Compared with November 2014, real orders were down 12.2 percent. This was the seventh straight month of month-over-month contraction. And, it was the third month in a row that orders contracted more than 12 percent compared with one year ago. The annual rate of change contracted for the second month in a row. While there is not much history to work from with this report, there are a number of potential leading indicators for this data series, including durable goods production, durable goods new orders, and the Gardner Business Index. All three of the aforementioned leading indicators are pointing towards slower annual growth in cutting tool orders.