BDO: Factory orders down 7% vs. Jan. '02
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, April 13, 2003
High Point — Factory orders were down 7% in January compared with the same month a year ago, according to BDO Seidman's monthly survey of U.S. residential furniture manufacturers. Shipments were off 3%.
"Most of the manufacturers we have talked with say business is very soft," said Ken Smith, director of the accounting and consulting firm's furniture industry practice, in the firm's Furniture Insights newsletter. "With the exception of some import programs, that softness tends to be pretty much across the board."
Some retailers said March was getting better, at least until the Iraq war began, Smith added. And other concerns — the stock market, employment — also may be keeping consumers out of the stores, he said.
Most of the economic indicators BDO tracks look unfavorable for the industry, with consumer confidence, auto sales, consumer spending and durable goods orders all slipping. The housing industry continued to be the bright spot, with sales of existing single-family homes setting a new monthly record of 6.09 million in January and mortgage rates dipping below 6%.
BDO said that slightly over 20% of the participants in its survey saw orders increase in January, while almost half said their orders were down 10% or more. Several were down more than 20%.
Shipment performance was more varied. Nearly 40% said shipments were higher this January than in January 2002, but almost 30% said shipments were down 10% or more.
| Factory orders, shipments in January | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| In billions of dollars | |||
| Change from | |||
| Dec. '02 | Jan. '02 | ||
| Source: BDO Seidman | |||
| Orders | $1.860 | 6% | -7% |
| Shipments | $1.868 | -5% | -3% |
| Order backlog | $1.932 | -3% | -1% |
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