CLEVELAND, OH—May 26, 2026—Metalforming manufacturers expect stable economic activity for the next three months, according to the May 2026 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. Prepared monthly, PMA’s report provides an economic indicator for the next three months of manufacturing, sampling 84 metalforming companies in the United States and Canada.
PMA’s May report shows that 64% of manufacturers surveyed expect no change in general economic activity in the next three months (up from 59% in April), 26% predict an increase in activity (compared to 30% last month) and 10% forecast a decrease in activity (compared to 11% in April).
Metalformers also anticipate incoming orders to remain stable for the next three months, with 55% of survey respondents expecting no change in orders (up from 39% in April), 35% predicting an increase in orders (down from 46% last month) and 10% forecasting a decrease in orders (down from 15% in April).
Shipping levels in May held steady overall, with 47% of metalformers surveyed reporting no change in average daily shipping levels (up from 34% in April), 45% reporting an increase (down from 51% in April) and 8% reporting a decrease (compared to 15% last month).
In addition, the survey showed that only 1% of respondents had workers on short time or layoff in May, compared to 2% in April, while 48% are currently expanding their workforce (up from 44% last month). Twenty-one percent of respondents reported longer lead times in May (compared to 20% the previous month), marking the third consecutive month of increases.
“PMA members continue to demonstrate resilience despite supply-chain disruptions, tariffs, geopolitical uncertainty, and other global economic pressures,” said Mark Getsay, managing director of the Precision Metalforming Association. “The data show that metalformers are continuing to adapt and meet customer demand in a highly dynamic environment.”
Full report results are available at https://surveys.pma.org/public/business_reports/pdf/BCREP.pdf.
PMA is the full-service trade association representing the $137-billion metalforming industry of North America—the industry that creates precision metal products using stamping, fabricating, spinning, slide forming and roll forming technologies, and other value-added processes. Its more than 900 member companies also include suppliers of equipment, materials and services to the industry. PMA leads companies toward superior competitiveness and profitability through advocacy, networking, statistics, the PMA Educational Foundation, FABTECH tradeshows and MetalForming magazine.