Menu
Posted July 20, 2020

May cutting tool consumption down 36 percent from last year

May U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $136.6 million, down 4.4 percent from April's $142.9 million and down 36 percent compared with the $213.4 million reported for May 2019.


With a year-to-date total of $854.1 million, 2020 is down 18.8 percent compared with May 2019, according to the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute (USCTI) and AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology.

“The cutting tool industry is doing its best to survive the effects of the forced pandemic recession, that is resulting in a significant decline in shipments,” said Brad Lawton, chairman of AMT’s Cutting Tool Product Group. “The questions are, when will we see recovery, in the third quarter or after the first week of November? And will we return to the sales volumes experienced in 2018 and 2019? Whatever are the answers, the facts are that the financial effects will be with the industry for an extended period.”

Phil Kurtz, vice president of Business Development of Dormer Pramet, said the cutting tool market continued to shrink from April but at a much slower pace. "We are now starting to see some market segments begin to stabilize and those segments should start to recover slowly in the months ahead. It is very possible April and May will represent the bottom of the cycle, but considering the volatility of the current market only time will tell.”

SPONSORED ADS