Purolator International Long Island Supply Chain Index Anticipates Positive Economic Conditions in Coming Months

Survey Updated to Provide an Overall Index Analysis (Currently 60.6) and New Information on Prices, Back Orders, and Exports

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Purolator International

Aug 08, 2016, 10:15 ET

JERICHO, N.Y., Aug. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Purolator International, the leading provider of cross-border logistics, today releases new Long Island Supply Chain Index data. Overall the results indicate that manufacturing leaders anticipate favorable conditions in the coming six months, with results slightly improving from the last survey done in November 2015.

New to this survey installment is an easy-to-understand index analysis of the respondents' sentiment. Each indicator in the survey has been converted into an index that ranges from 0 (unanimous decline) to 100 (unanimous improvement). Numbers above 50 indicate positive growth and those below 50 indicate decline.

The Purolator International Long Island Supply Chain Index released today has an overall index rating of 60.6. In fact, each indicator, with the exception of air shipments, was positive. Moreover, the key indices of new orders (73) and production levels (69) have improved since the last survey.

For this survey, questions were expanded to provide information on: the prices of raw materials, exports, and back orders to provide a more comprehensive view of manufacturing conditions on Long Island.

"The response to our launch of the Long Island Supply Chain Index was extraordinary," said John Costanzo, President, Purolator International. "It was validation that the region's business leaders find this data beneficial, and we hope this expanded and enhanced survey continues to provide value for their business in the coming months."

Purolator International Long Island Supply Chain Index Summary

May 2016	% Increase	% Decrease	% Same	Index
New Orders	51	6	43	73.0
Production Level	45	7	46	69.3
Price (Raw Material)	36	2	59	67.5
Exports	24	4	71	60.0
New Employees	17	5	78	56.3
Inventory Level	22	13	63	54.9
Backlog Orders	22	13	65	54.3
Air Shipments*	12	13	75	49.3
SUMMARY INDEX				60.6

* Asked about past six months.

Survey Highlights

Over half (51%) of all executives expect new orders to increase in the next six months, compared to 45% in November 2015. Similar to the last year, optimism was more pronounced in larger companies with sales of more than $1M (62%) and with younger executives under the age of 50 (67%).

The respondents offered a number of reasons when asked why they expect new orders to increase, including: the emergence of new customers or markets (26%), changing seasonal demand (26%), a general improvement in business conditions (13%), and an expansion in their production capabilities (13%).

Production levels were also positive with 45% expecting production to increase in the coming six months, compared to 38% last time surveyed. More than a quarter (27%) attributed this to seasonal demand and another 37% to the emergence of new customers and/or markets.

In looking back, 40% of all manufacturing companies had hired new employees in the past six months, a decrease when compared to the previous survey that reported 50% having hired. However, 17% expect to expand the size of their company compared to 5% who said their company would decrease in size. Most common reasons cited include new customers (29%) and improved business conditions (15%).

Additional findings revealed:

The majority expect their inventory levels to increase (22%) or remain the same (63%), showing positive growth from the last survey (14% and 68% respectively in November 2015).
22% of respondents expected to increase their backlog of orders in the coming six months.
More than a third (36%) expect the prices of raw materials to increase, with only 2% citing an expected decline. A greater number of smaller companies (with revenues under $1M) expected prices to increase than their larger counterparts (44% vs. 27%). This may reflect the greater ability for larger companies to control or negotiate the price of raw materials.
Among the companies surveyed that use air shipments (more than two thirds of respondents), the majority (75%), maintained the same level of air shipments. This is on par with the last survey with 85% maintaining the status quo in November 2015. Air shipments were the only metric with a negative index rating of 49.
Among exporters (37% of respondents), a greater number expect to increase (24%) than decrease (4%) exports in the coming six months. This increase was cited to be due to expanded oversea sales (29%) and new customers (35%).

Long Island Supply Chain Index is a biannual survey of Long Island manufacturers' business forecast for the six months ahead. The survey results announced today reflect Long Island manufacturers' plans through December 2016. The survey reached 200 Nassau and Suffolk County manufacturing leaders, who participated in the phone survey conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI). Data was collected by landline between May 10, 2016 and May 27, 2016. Stony Brook University designed the survey and evaluated the results. The margin of sampling error for the complete set of data is ±7.0 percentage points with a response rate of 11 percent.

For a copy of the report please click Long Island Supply Chain Index.

About Purolator International
Purolator International is a subsidiary of Purolator Inc., Canada's largest integrated freight, parcel and logistics solutions provider. Purolator International specializes in the air and surface forwarding of Express, Freight and Parcel shipments, customs brokerage, and fulfillment and delivery services to, from and within North America. Purolator International has received numerous industry awards for its superior service and innovative solutions, including "100 Great Supply Chain Projects" by Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine, "Top 100 Great Supply Chain Partners" list by Supply Chain Brain magazine, "Top 100 3PL Providers" by Inbound Logistics, and Logistics Management's "Quest for Quality Award." In addition to facilities throughout New York, Purolator International has locations in key U.S. markets including Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, Newark, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Raleigh/Durham, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Saint Louis.