Machinery orders continue rally in Q1 despite war uncertainties
By Kristin Bartschi
New orders of metalworking machinery totaled $681.3 million in March, a 40.3% increase from February and a 31.5% increase from March 2025, according to the latest U.S. Manufacturing Technology Orders Report published by AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology.
Manufacturing technology orders tracked by USMTO totaled $1.61 billion for the first quarter of 2026, a 27.8% increase year over year.
After a year of turbulent uncertainty caused by constantly shifting tariff regimes, businesses began to settle into a new normal and furthered capital investments to meet resilient consumer demand. That rally in metalworking machinery demand carried into the first quarter of 2026 with little deterrence from the escalating geopolitical uncertainty caused by the outbreak of war with Iran in the closing days of February 2026. While inflation for machine tools picked up at the beginning of the year, a sustained increase in average order value above inflation continues to point to increased demand for automation as manufacturers deal with a shortage of nearly half a million workers.
Contract machine shops, the largest customer of manufacturing technology, increased orders, but at a slower pace than the overall market, continuing the sector’s trend of underperforming the broader market. Orders from aerospace manufacturers declined around 12% from February 2026 but remained elevated as commercial backlogs grow amid capacity constraints and military production intensifies to replace systems used in the war with Iran. Manufacturers of engines, turbines, and other power transmission systems more than doubled their investment over February 2026 levels, nearly matching the investments made in December 2025. Increased demand for electrical power needed for data centers will likely spur additional investment from this sector in the coming months.
Economic output in the first quarter of 2026 showed a resilient consumer and a strong appetite from businesses for capital investment. The latest forecast shows that machinery orders will likely be on par with 2025, yet cutting tool demand is forecast to grow, indicating that manufacturer output will remain high. As quotations are converted to orders and manufacturers’ backlogs continue to grow, there is a strong potential for an upside surprise in the remainder of 2026.
INDUSTRIAL SUPPLY MAGAZINE
The March/April issue of Industrial Supply magazine features an in-depth cover story about Pack-n-Tape. Plus, we're featuring articles by contributing writers Dr. Bharani Nagarathnam and Frank Hurtte, as well as interviews with numerous product and distribution industry experts.
