The U.S. metal forming sector has seen relatively flat production over the past six months, with modest signs of upward momentum. This was reflected by the Federal Reserve’s industrial production index for fabricated metal products (an economic indicator that measures the real output of businesses in the fabricated metal product manufacturing sector in the U.S. by tracking the physical production of goods within this segment) remaining in the high 90s throughout Q4 2024 and into early 2025. (The index is based on 2017 = 100.)
While it has yet to return to its pre-pandemic peak, the index has demonstrated a consistent trajectory since 2022, and recent data through March 2025 suggests a gradual upward trend.
Capacity utilization for fabricated metals averaged approximately 76% in 2024, slightly below the 77% seen in the previous year, indicating a modest easing of factory activity amid softer year-end demand.
These various data points represent what we have also heard from many of our clients in the metal space and reflected in their performance: putting aside revenue fluctuations generated primarily from steel pricing, volume has been steady if unremarkable for the last several years but seems to stall at a certain level with many of their customers ordering conservatively after a brief post-Covid bump. What does the future hold?
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Metal Forming PIP May 2025 by Prairie Capital Advisors Inc.
