The Perc Report includes monthly highlights on the most up-to-date plastics industry economic data, along with recent activities, articles, and blogs which you may have missed.
Retail and food services sales dropped by 0.9% in January, a $5.9 billion decrease from December, totaling $700.3 billion compared to the previous $706.2 billion.
Headline inflation decreased to 3.1% in January, while core inflation was unchanged at 3.9% and exceeded expectations.
Jobless claims dropped for the third consecutive week to 201,000 as of February 17th. Voluntary separations have eased, and companies announcing significant layoffs suggest a slowdown in labor market growth.
The overall Industrial Production Index slightly decreased by 0.1% in January compared to December, with the Manufacturing Index showing a 0.5% decline during the same period.
Consumer loans, encompassing credit cards and other revolving plans across all commercial banks, reached $1.04 trillion on February 14th, marking a $3.2 billion increase from the previous week.
U.S. exports for plastics machinery and equipment increased to $284.6 million in Q4 2023 which imports rose to $427.6 million. Trade deficit in plastics equipment rose to $143.0 million.
Manufacturer’s value of plastics and rubber products shipments increased 1.0% in December on a year-over-year basis. Value of shipments totaled $24.0 billion in December.
The Industrial Production Index on plastics product manufacturing declined 1.8% in January from December.
The average weekly earnings of all employees in plastics product manufacturing increased 4.8% in December from a year earlier – beating the 3.8% wage increase in overall non-durable goods manufacturing.
U.S. natural polymer exports dropped by 6.5% in 2023, while imports increased by the same percentage, suggesting potential capacity constraints to meeting growing demand.
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