Machine shops and other manufacturers continued to reduce their orders for cutting tools during the final quarter of 2024, -13.8% from October to $183.1 million during November. That figure is a -9.7% drop from the November 2023 total, and it brings the 11-month 2024 order total to $2.25 billion, roughly even (-0.3%) with January-November 2023.
The growth rate for cutting tool shipments has declined every month since April 2024, according to the latest Cutting Tool Market Report issued by AMT - the Assn. for Manufacturing Technology and the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute. CTMR is a monthly summary of shipments made by companies who comprise the majority of the U.S. market for cutting tools – whose customers are contract machine shops (job shops) and OEMs for whom cutting tools are significant consumable.
“Uncertainty due to the(2024) election and now potential changes to policy have kept new projects and orders for manufactured products on hold, resulting in stagnant cutting tool consumption,” observed AMT’s Jack Burley, chairman of the association’s Cutting Tool Product Group.
Although the CTMR portrays real-time activity in manufacturing markets, a similar indecisiveness was evident in AMT’s recent U.S. Manufacturing Technology Orders report, which measures prospects for future manufacturing activity based on capital investments.
“Recent cutting tool consumption data reveals complex dynamics in the manufacturing sector as 2024 ended, providing crucial insights into potential 2025 trends,” offered Costikyan Jarvis, president of Jarvis Cutting Tools. “The final quarter of 2024 showed notable volatility, with October posting strong numbers followed by a significant decline in November. This pattern suggests ongoing adjustments in manufacturing production schedules and investment decisions.
“Overall consumption levels remain historically robust, with monthly figures consistently exceeding $180 million,” Jarvis continued. “With the ISM Purchasing Managers Index improving, Boeing going back to work, and the overall reshoring of manufacturing, 2025 looks to be a much stronger year.”
“Despite lower new orders for durable goods, the outlook remains optimistic for a return to more activity across all sectors,” Burley said. “Aerospace was the most significant cause for the reduction in manufacturing activity, and many machine shops and Tier 1 suppliers continue to wait for U.S. commercial aircraft orders to get back on track.”
