US apparel industry reports decrease in growth in March

Several industries, including textile and apparel, reported a slowdown in growth in March, according to the US Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI).

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee reported that the March Manufacturing PMI was 46.3 per cent, 1.4 points lower than the 47.7 per cent recorded in February.

According to the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business, the manufacturing sector’s economic activity shrank in March for the fifth consecutive month after 28 months of growth.

One company in the apparel, leather, and related products industry stated, “Overall business is still sluggish. Order pickup from customers has not yet reached pre-pandemic levels.

For the month of March, one of the industries reporting declining inventory was Apparel, Leather and Allied Products.

“The US manufacturing sector contracted again, with the Manufacturing PMI declining compared to the previous month,” said Timothy R. Fiore, chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee.

“With Business Survey Committee panellists reporting softening new order rates over the previous 10 months, the March composite index reading reflects companies continuing to slow outputs to better match demand for the first half of 2023 and prepare for growth in the late summer/early fall period.”

The index shows the following highlights:

• The Manufacturing PMI has dropped to its lowest point since May 2020, when a reading of 43.5 per cent was recorded.
• With a reading of 44.3 per cent, the New Orders Index stayed in contraction territory and was 2.7 points lower than the reading of 47 per cent that was observed in February.
• In comparison to February’s reading of 47.3 per cent, the Production Index reading of 47.8 per cent represents a 0.5 percentage point gain.
• The Prices Index was 49.2 per cent, a decrease of 2.1 percentage points from the February reading of 51.3 per cent.
• The Backlog of Orders Index recorded 43.9 per cent, down 1.2 percentage points from the reading of 45.1 per cent in February.

“New order rates remain sluggish as panelists become more concerned about when manufacturing growth will resume,” Fiore continued. “Supply chains are now ready for growth, as panelists’ comments support reduced lead times for their more important purchases. Price instability remains, but future demand is uncertain as companies continue to work down overdue deliveries and backlogs.”