The following is an archive of Electroindustry Business Confidence Indices for 2004.

December 2004
Confidence in current business conditions expanded modestly in all four regions this month, with the Asia/Pacific index’s nearly six point improvement to 55.8 marking the greatest change from November. The Europe index expanded by less than one point and remains below the growth threshold at 46.9. North America and Latin America also broadened by less than one point, but both indexes remain solidly above the growth threshold at 62.1 and 60.0 points, respectively. Full Report ( 199k)

November 2004
For the first time since April 2004, confidence in current conditions affecting the electroindustry in North America expanded from the previous month, improving five points to 61.5 in November. The Latin America index also expanded, moving from 57.9 in October to 59.4 this month. The other two regional indexes did not fare so well. Asia/Pacific contracted from 58.3 to the threshold value of 50, suggesting a tenuous level of confidence. Meanwhile, Europe slipped nearly 10 points to 46.2 this month, falling completely below the presumed growth threshold and into the contractionary range. Full Report ( 198k)

October 2004
Based on all four regional indexes, confidence in current conditions affecting the electroindustry did not appear to shift markedly from last month’s levels. The North America index retreated a little more than one point to 55.2, while confidence in Europe broadened slightly from 56.3 to 56.7. Confidence in Asia/Pacific expanded by just over 4 points to 58.3, and the breadth of confidence in Latin America grew to 57.8 from last month’s 50 point score. Change in the indexes measuring confidence in future conditions was similarly minimal with the notable exception of North America. Until last month the North America future conditions index had remained at or above 70 points for nearly a year and a half. In September, however, the index contracted sharply to 58.3. That reading appears to have been a momentary blip as the October results revealed that the index had widened to 70.7. Full Report ( 197k)

September 2004
Current conditions in North America remained essentially unchanged from last month, edging down by less than one point to 56.3 in September. The Europe and Asia/Pacific indexes, both of which stood at 50 points last month, improved to 56.3 and 54.2 points, respectively. In contrast, the Latin America index contracted sharply from 67.6 in August to 50.0 this month. Following 12 months during which the index reflected improving conditions, the reading of 50 should be interpreted as indicating that conditions are unchanged from that improved level. However, the worrisome nature of a reading of 50 index points is that it reflects, on aggregate, no improvement in business conditions, and the potential for contraction is uncomfortably close. Full Report ( 204k)

August 2004
NEMA has released its August Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI). With the exception of Latin America, which expanded by six points to 67.6, confidence in current business conditions eroded to varying degrees in August. The North America index continued its string of weaker numbers for the fourth consecutive month as it receded by five points to 56.9 in August. The current indexes for both Europe and Asia/Pacific reached precisely 50 points, the dividing line between expansion and contraction in the electrical manufacturing sector. The Asia/Pacific index contracted by about 11 points, but Europe index shrunk by more than 18 points between July and August. Confidence in business conditions six months out has contracted in all four regional indexes. Most of the reduced breadth of confidence is relatively minor with the North America, Latin America and Europe indexes all receding by less than five points to, respectively, 71.7, 68.8, and 57.1 index points. The most dramatic change from July’s report is in the Asia/Pacific region, which slipped nearly 11 points to 53.1 in August. Full Report ( 195k)

July 2004
The current conditions indexes for all four regions remained above 50 again this month, but some of the changes in the breadth of confidence are rather noteworthy. Confidence in current conditions in North America and Europe have been heading in different directions over the last few months, and that difference was highlighted again in July as the North America index contracted by 8 points to 60.4 while the Europe index expanded by nearly the same margin to 68.2 points. Although the current conditions indexes for both Latin America and Asia/Pacific narrowed, the change in each was relatively slight. Full Report ( 195k)

June 2004
All four current conditions indexes remained in the range above 50, suggesting growth in the electrical industry. Compared to May’s results, two regional indexes, Latin America and Europe, expanded while North America and Asia/Pacific contracted. In all four indexes, however, the change was relatively slight as the biggest change was only a six-point decline to 62.5 in Asia/Pacific. Confidence in North America receded by nearly five points to reach 68.5 this month. The Latin America index extended its breadth by about two points to 63.3, and confidence in Europe broadened from 57.7 to 60.7. Full Report ( 195k)

May 2004
All but one of the current conditions indexes contracted from their April levels this month, and in two cases the contraction was rather marked. However, all four regional indexes remained in the growth zone above 50 points. Asia/Pacific stayed essentially flat at 69 points. By contrast, North America, Latin America, and Europe narrowed considerably. Europe suffered the largest contraction compared to its April level, losing 12 points to reach 58 on the index scale. The North America index regressed to 73 from the record-broad 84 it reached in April, while Latin America slipped 6 points to 61. Full Report (192k)

April 2004
For the first time in the three-year history of the EBCI, panel members submitted not a single worse response. In all four regions, and for both current and future conditions, the responses were entirely non-negative. Needless to say, optimism regarding the business conditions affecting the electroindustry is quite widespread. The current conditions regional indexes all expanded when compared to last month. The North America index moved from 76 in March to a record 84 points this month, and Europe’s index widened nearly 10 points to reach 70 points in April. Full Report ( 193k)

March 2004
All four regions again posted current confidence index numbers above 50 this month. Three of the four regions displayed an expanded breadth of confidence, but Asia/Pacific contracted for the second consecutive month. The North America current index expanded by four points to 76, the breadth of confidence in Latin America also increased modestly from 62 points in February to 66 points this month, and confidence in Europe widened by nearly 11 index points to 61. Although the Asia/Pacific current conditions index narrowed by approximately five points, its March value of 67 is still firmly in the expected growth range. Full Report ( 192k)

February 2004
Although the current conditions indexes for all four regions remained at or above 50 this month, all four indexes lost some breadth of confidence, and the current index for Europe slipped right to the edge of the line denoting conditions favorable to growth. The North America, Latin America, and Asia/Pacific indexes all narrowed by between one and three points compared to January, measuring 72, 62, and 72 points, respectively, in February. By contrast, Europe’s index value contracted by more than seven points in falling to exactly 50 points, the threshold value above which conditions are favorable to industry growth. Full Report  ( 194k)

January 2004
The current conditions indexes for all four regions measured above 50 points in January. The breadth of confidence was greatest regarding Asia/Pacific, which reached 75 points. At 72 points, confidence in the economic conditions in North America was likewise broad, but a new measurement added to the survey this month suggests that confidence among the panelists is not particularly deep. Europe continues to exhibit the least breadth of confidence, although still in the growth range at 57 points, and the panel was largely positive regarding conditions in Latin America, which measured nearly 65 points. Full Report ( 185k)