While the overall Extrusion Business Index declined by 1% last month, things seem to be getting better for film and sheet processors.  According to our latest economic indices, prepared by Bill Wood of Mountaintop Economics, film extruders experienced an 11% increase in business last month compared to April 2006, following an 18% increase in March (vs. March '06).  The film index is driven by demand in consumer spending for non-durable goods.  Wood is projecting an overall expansion of at least 5% in 2007 compared to 2006.

Sheet processors, meanwhile, saw a 20% bump in their business last month, when stacked up against March '06.  This was on the heels of a 17% hike in February.  The ubiquitous nature of sheet - it correlates with trends in a variety of industries - makes it difficult to pinpoint a cause, though the packaging sector is showing decent growth.

Things are not as rosy for siding, which dropped 21% last month vs. March '06.  Siding fell 9% in 2006, no doubt due to a 13% decline in housing starts, Wood reports.  Ironically, the pipe market held steady last month, but Wood is projecting the construction slump to continue in '07, which will drag pipe down along with it.  What helps pipe (notably HDPE) in the long run is that, unlike siding, it has applications in non-residential applications.

Injection business up again

The Injection Molding Business Index, meanwhile, climbed 3% in the latest month when compared with a year ago.  This followed an 18% jump during the previous month.  After a moderate gain of 1% in 2006, Wood is forecasting the index to expand 4% in 2007.  There might be a hiccup in the near-term if the economy slows, but Wood is expecting the manufacturing sector to gain momentum by the fall.  For molders, the hot markets are computers, medical products, and packaging.  Wood expects the motor vehicle market to bounce back from a down '06 as well.

IML Comes to Thermoforming

Injection molders sped to in-mold labeling with rocket-like speed, but the technology is starting to catch on in thermoforming as well.   In this issue's cover story, Senior Editor Joe Grande reports that recent advances have made IML more cost-effective for thermoformers, paving the way for lots more interest among these processors.

Understanding the Plastics Trade Deficit

You may have an anxious feeling that the U.S. is being flooded with plastics imports and that the water is steadily rising.  A new report from the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) will confirm some of your fears and put hard numbers behind them.  In Global Business Trends, SPI reports that imports of processed plastics products grew by 33.3% from 2003 to 2005 (the latest data in this report).  At the same time exports grew 20.4%.  Thus, the net trade deficit in processed plastics ballooned almost 85% from $3.3 billion to $6.1 billion.  Among the top categories of imported plastics products were household and toilet articles, sacks and bags, tableware and kitchenware, and packaging materials.

If you suspect China as the main culprit, you're right.  China's trade surplus with the U.S. in processed plastics was more than $6.4 billion in 2005, up almost 50% since 2003.  China's share of total U.S. consumption of processed plastics was 3.9% in 2005, up from 2.6% in '03.  If you add processed plastics contained in other imports, China's trade surplus is estimated at a whopping $15.1 billion, or 53.5% of the total U.S. trade deficit in processed plastics.

Coming Soon - The MoldMaking Expo

If you are interested in all aspects related to moldmaking, you might want to check out the MoldMaking Expo which will be held April 18-19 at the Donald E. Stevens Center in Rosemont, IL.  The conference and show is presented by MoldMaking Technology Magazine, a sister publication of Plastics Technology.

Meanwhile, mark your calendars for September 19-20, when Plastics Technology will present its Leading-Edge Molding Technical Conference.  The conference will be held at the Wyndham Hotel in downtown Cleveland.  The focus is on emerging technologies in injection molding, and the topics to be covered include in-mold assembly, in-line compounding of LFT, in-mold painting and decorating, auto glazing and RFID.

What kind of stories would you like to see in Plastics Technology Magazine or on www.ptonline.com?  E-mail us your suggestions - if we follow up on your idea, you get a free PT t-shirt.