North America Industrial Spending Continues Decline in August 2009

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--In August, the value of active industrial projects in North America declined for the ninth consecutive month to $199.34 billion, according to Industrial Info's North America Industrial Spending Index. The decline is indicative of the slowdown of construction starts that the industrial sector has experienced since the economy hit the skids and companies began to scale back capital spending plans in 2008. Industries with the greatest percentage decrease in project spending this year include Oil & Gas Transmission with -79% growth, Petroleum Refining with -75% growth, Pulp & Paper with -69% growth, Alternative Fuels with -65% growth, Oil & Gas Terminals with -55% growth and Chemical Processing with -47% growth.

Click on the image at right to view a chart showing the North American Industrial Spending Index.

The only bright spot this year is the Industrial Manufacturing Industry, which is showing an increase in project spending from $33.08 billion in 2008 to $36.14 billion in 2009. This growth can be attributed to increased project starts in the light rail and semiconductor sectors, and comes in spite of significant reductions and plant closures in automotive and heavy manufacturing capability in the U.S.

The North American Project Spending Index is a monthly indicator comparing the total investment value of the current year to the previous year, based on actual project construction starts, in order to get a measure of growth or contraction in the industrial market. The index takes into consideration project-spending activity in 12 vertical industries: Power; Terminals; Oil & Gas Transmission; Oil & Gas Production; Alternative Fuels; Petroleum Refining; Chemical Processing; Metals & Minerals; Pulp, Paper, & Wood; Food & Beverage; Industrial Manufacturing; and Pharmaceutical & Biotech.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy related markets. For more than 26 years, Industrial Info has provided plant and project opportunity databases, market forecasts, high resolution maps, and daily industry news.