No month has fared better when compared to the previous month than September 2020 scored vis a vis August. With not one report of outright worse conditions, and nearly three-quarters indicating a better business environment, the current conditions gauge rose nearly 17 points to an all-time high reading of 85.3. The tenor of respondent comments helps to highlight a caveat regarding the topline number. Despite the record-setting reading, business was not necessarily booming but was better across most of the electroindustry when assessed against last month. As one panelist noted, conditions were “improving slowly.”  EBCI results 202009nm

With a majority of respondents reporting better conditions, the current component of the Electroindustry Business Confidence Index increased by more than seven points, reaching 68.4 this month. In retrospect, July's survey results pointed to a relatively widespread sense of a plateau in the market, but in August only around one-third of the panel indicated unchanged conditions. Comments largely reflected the Improvement suggested by the numbers, with one panelist noting that, "order rates are strong." EBCI results 202008nm

Ticking down a nearly-imperceptible 1.4 points, the current conditions component remained firmly in expansion territory at 61.1 in July. The share of respondents that reported unchanged conditions increased, while those indicating better conditions edged back slightly. Some sectors of the electroindustry continued to note robust activity, but many comments suggested a plateau of sorts at an elevated level compared to the pandemic trough. Further expansion may be constrained because of continued uncertainty about the course of the virus and responses to it. EBCI results 202007nm

Bearing in mind that the EBCI measures perceived changes relative to a prior time period, the current conditions component for June marked a vast Improvement versus May, gaining 30 points to 62.5. The June result validated the assumption that conditions facing the electroindustry hit bottom in April, and expansion relative to that low point and a dismal May has begun. Some corners of the industry have thrived throughout the pandemic and continued to do so this month. Even among those sectors that had struggled, the tone of comments improved in June reflecting an assessment that "business is still spotty but the level of day-to-day activity... is picking up." ​EBCI results 202006nm.pdf

Still deep in contractionary territory, the current conditions component for May nevertheless pointed to the likelihood that the electroindustry bottomed out in April and began clawing back toward growth this month. The nearly 17-point increase to 32.4 point from April to May was driven largely by a significant decline in the share of panelists that reported worse conditions this month. Very few additional respondents rated conditions as better, but many more registered unchanged conditions, suggesting that the bleeding has stopped for now. Survey results regarding current conditions may have been best summarized by the comment that “although not great, April is better than March.” ​EBCI results 202005nm.pdf

​With lockdown policies fully in effect across most of the country, the current conditions component fell by more than 15 points to 15.8 in April. The last time this reading had drifted so far below 50, the United States was in the midst of the 2007-2009 recession. EBCI results 202004nm.pdf

Some parts of the electroindustry were reporting healthy business in March, but most respondents were already reporting worsening conditions by the middle of the month. The current conditions component, with a majority of panel members reporting worse conditions, shrunk to 31.3 points in March from last month’s reading of 50. Most of the responses were submitted prior to the wave of state-imposed “stay in place” and lockdown orders and so appear to be more reflective of reduced demand driven by uncertainty than by the effect of planned shutdowns.​ EBCI results 202003nm.pdf

Current conditions retreated in February but did not fall back out of expansionary territory. The 9-point slide from last month's result left the February number at 50 points. The share of respondents noting better conditions declined, while the number reporting worse conditions increased by a similar amount. The proportion of unchanged responses held steady. Much of the commentary contained a sense of optimism shot through with concern over the coronavirus and its effects on supply chains.​ EBCI results 20200227nm.pdf

For the fifth consecutive month the current conditions component of the EBCI topped or equaled 50 points, which signaled conditions conducive to an expanding electroindustry. At 59.4, a 9.4 point increase from December’s level, the January score marked this component’s highest reading since June 2018. A majority of panelists reported unchanged conditions, but the share of responses noting better conditions increased by 20 percentage points from last month. Despite the overall manufacturing malaise reflected in the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) survey results, confidence in the electroindustry remained steady to improved.  ​EBCI results 20200129nm.pdf