OTHER NEWS - Aug. 12, 1996

June Machine Tool Orders Total $643.1 Million: The industry estimate represents a new system of calculating machine tool orders compiled by the Assn. for Manufacturing Technology and the American Machine Tool Distributors Assn. The estimates will now include consumption of domestic machine tools and foreign orders sold by U.S. distributors, whereas before purchases of such foreign-made tools weren’t counted. The groups didn’t provide comparative numbers for orders in previous months. They did report a 7.6% decline in the number of units ordered in June to 2.9 million from 3.1 million. Under the previous accounting system, the AMT reported last month that June orders for U.S. industrial tools had risen 18.74% from the previous month as demand from U.S. customers soared. Machine tools are used to shape and assemble metals in products ranging from diesel engines to dishwashers, and thus orders are a gauge of economic activity.