The Marketplace Key Figures and Analysis

May 16, 2003
Capacity of utilization decreases in April Capacity of utilization for total industry, at 74.4 percent, decreased at a rate nearly 0.5 percentage point

Capacity of utilization decreases in April

Capacity of utilization for total industry, at 74.4 percent, decreased at a rate nearly 0.5 percentage point from March and decreased almost 7 percentage points below its 1972-2002 average.

Industrial production fell 0.5 percent in both April and March. At 109.7 percent of its 1997 average, output in April was 0.4 percent lower than its level in April 2002. Manufacturing output declined 0.6 percent in April.

Electrical manufacturers' shipments rose in March

Electrical manufacturers' shipments rose 1.7 percent in March from February, and stood 6 percent below the March 2002 level, according to data from the U.S. Commerce Department. March's shipments totaled $2.497 billion. Inventories, at $4.251 billion, rose 0.3 percent from February.

Dodge Construction contract awards rise

In April, total construction contracts as reported by McGraw-Hill Inc., rose 13.8 percent from the previous month. Compared to the same month a year ago, total construction contract awards were down 2.6 percent. April's monthly awards totaled $44.8 billion. Residential construction awards were up 9.1 percent for the month. Nonresidential construction contracts were up 21.8 percent for the month. Nonbuilding construction was up 15.9 percent for April.

Small business optimism sees record jump

In the biggest single-month increase in the history of the survey, the NFIB Research Foundation's Index of Small Business Optimism jumped an unprecedented 5.3 points to 100.0 in April. This increase bests even the leaps of 3.8 points and 4.3 points in February and March of 1991 after the first Gulf War. However, NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg warned that while this increase may signal a return to more “normal” growth, it is unlikely to presage an extraordinary boom on par with that of the late 1990s. He emphasized that the February and March 2003 Index levels were unusually poor. “The weight of war uncertainties has been lifted from the shoulders of small-business owners.” Dunkelberg said. “At the same time, oil prices have gone down and severe weather conditions have abated. However, we are still in an economy that is working out the excess capacity of the '90s boom. Manufacturers still have idle assembly lines, retailers are still drawing down inventory, and consumers still have durable goods that are new enough that they can wait for a good deal before buying replacements.”