The Fastener Distributor Index (FDI) survey for December, 2022 ended its 11th year with a thud with a startling reading of 43.8. This is after temporarily rising into expansion territory at 54.9 the previous month, seasonally adjusted.
The Forward Looking Indicator (FLI) gained modestly, but continues to indicate expectations of a weaker market ahead with a reading of 45.0, after coming in at just 42.0 in November.
Key Takeaway:
The seasonally adjusted Fastener Distributor Index (FDI) capped off the year with a startling sub-50 reading, coming in at 43.8 in December. This was a significant deceleration from last month’s 54.9 reading and indicates market conditions worsened vs. November. Commentary pointed to slowing around the holidays and domestic trucking issues constraining product supply as the primary culprits. Looking ahead, the Forward-Looking Indicator (FLI) registered another sub-50 index value at 45.0, but improved modestly vs. last month. Overall, the FDI/FLI suggest continued slowing in fastener distribution market conditions.
Listen to episode #184 of the Fully Threaded Radio podcast for further commentary and analysis.
FND encourages all North American fastener distributors to take part in the FDI. If you are interested in being a more active part of the fastener industry, you can apply to add your company to the FDI survey group. Complete the “Request an Invitation to Participate” form by clicking here. Once verified, you will receive login ID and password information and you will be notified by email every month when the survey period has been opened. – Fastener News Desk
About the Fastener Distributor Index (FDI).
The Fastener Distributor Index (FDI) was developed as a service to the fastener industry by the FCH Sourcing Network in 2012 to be a new benchmark for the fastener industry. The FDI is a monthly survey of North American fastener distributors, conducted with the FCH Sourcing Network and Baird with support from the National Fastener Distributors Association. It offers insights into current fastener industry trends/outlooks. Similarly, the Forward-Looking Indicator (FLI) is based on a weighted average of four forward-looking inputs from the FDI survey. This indicator is designed to provide directional perspective on future expectations for fastener market conditions. As diffusion indexes, values above 50.0 signal strength, while readings below 50.0 signal weakness. Over time, results should be directly relevant to Fastenal (FAST) and broadly relevant to other industrial distributors such as W.W. Grainger (GWW) and MSC Industrial (MSM).
The FDI Survey website is a resource than can be accessed by anyone, but it can only be updated by registered users during the monthly open survey period, which occurs during the last week of each month.
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