NEMA Economist Sees Slowing Market Conditions for 2016

Growth conditions in the electrical market may be the least likely economic scenario in 2016, according to Don Leavens, vice president and chief economist for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), Washington, D.C.

At the association’s recent  annual meeting, Leavens sketched out two different economic forecasts, but said the path leading to less promising economic conditions was more likely in the short-term. He based his less-than-bullish forecast on a hesitancy by companies to invest in brick-and-mortar, hurting capital expenditures; heavy global debt loads; and the low number of people in the U.S. workforce. While he stopped short of calling for a recession, he is concerned about the slowdown in the industrial market.

Leavens said a less-likely economic scenario is that the expected surge next year in single-family housing construction would nudge up consumer spending and increase the need for additional non-residential construction to support new housing developments.