Cutting Tool Orders Slowing

Real cutting tool orders were $156.5 million in December 2015. This was the second lowest level (November 2015 was the lowest) for cutting tool orders since December 2012. The order total in December was 16.2 percent less than the previous December. That was the second time in three months that cutting tool orders contracted more than 16 percent compared with one year ago. This was the eighth straight month of month-over-month contraction. The annual rate of change contracted at an accelerating rate for the third 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.