OEM respondents to the Association of Equipment Manufacturers’ Q1 survey are showing elevated optimism about the year ahead.
“Based on the qualitative perceptions of our members, given by what we’ve been through last year, I could say we’re solidly in the boom period in our industries,” says Benjamin Duyck, AEM’s director of market intelligence.
Each quarter, AEM asks its manufacturer members to assess market demand, with questions about new orders, production, work backlog and inventories, among other things. Respondents give their perceptions of equipment demand year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter and how they expect demand to evolve over the next 12 months.
While detailed survey results are only available to AEM members, Duyck was able to give Equipment World a quick snapshot of what AEM members are saying. And what they are saying is solidly in the positive quadrant.
“The last time we saw this strong of a movement into the positive sector was after the 2016 election,” Duyck says. “The index is at the highest level since 1997.”
“These are perceptions that usually proceed the actual market by six to nine months,” he adds.
