The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has released its Electrocindustry Businesses Conditions Index (EBCI) for the month of May, which increased slightly to 53.3 points from the neutral 50.0 in April. Meanwhile, 20 percent of panelists reported an improvement in business conditions in May, roughly the same as those who reported the same in April (19 percent). Fewer panelists claimed a worsening of conditions in May (13 percent) than in April (19 percent). Meanwhile, two-thirds of panelists said that conditions were unchanged in May compared to the 63 percent who said so in April.
The survey also measures the intensity of change in the electroindustry, which rose by 0.2 points in May from a neutral 0.0 in April. Panelists are asked to rate the intensity change on a scale from -0.5 (deteriorated significantly) to +5 (improved significantly).
The EBCI for North American industry business conditions over the next six months also grew more positive in May, increasing to 56.7 in May from 53.1 in April, with more than one-quarter of the panelists reporting positive expectations for the projected period compared to the 19 percent of panelists indicating so in April. The same number of panelists—13 percent—reported negative expectations while the share expecting no change in the coming six months dipped to 60 percent in May from 69 percent in April.
The report is based on responses from 15 panelists who are senior managers at NEMA member companies.
Check back next month to read the June report.
