According to the report, motor vehicle and parts employment experienced the largest decline at 21%, which in turn led to 10% job loss in the plastic and rubber products industries and 9% in primary metals. Meanwhile, the plunge in the housing market led to 19% job loss in furniture, 17% in wood products, 11% in nonmetallic mineral products and 10% in textile product mills. Even food and beverage manufacturing, which tends to fluctuate very little, saw employment decline 1% and 2%, respectively.
On the other hand, job loss in the high-tech sector is mixed. Electronic instruments employment declined a modest 2% in the 13-month period, while computer and peripheral employmentdeclined only 1% and communication equipment employment was unchanged. On the other hand,semiconductor and electronic components employment, which are more exposed to the auto, appliance, and consumer electronics downturn than other high-tech industries, fell a more severe 7%.
Though the most recent manufacturing report from the Institute for Supply Management in Tempe, AZ indicates a very slight uptick in February compared to January, Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI president and CEO Thomas J. Duesterberg attributes the small increase in to some resumption of automotive production after the long holiday closures rather than a genuine upturn in fortunes
"The only good news in the February ISM report is that manufacturing did not fall further from the depths it reached in January," he says. "[M]anufacturing is still mired in the worst downturn since the 1973-74 recession, and there is little on the horizon to suggest improvement. Construction and exports continued to weaken in February, the decline in capital spending is at near depression levels and business confidence remains weak."
While his organization's projections suggest that inventory liquidation, low interest rates, global stimulus programs and pent-up demand may lead to stabilization and weak growth late this year, Duesterberg says huge risks still remain.
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