Shipments of cutting tools, measured by the Cutting Tool Market Report compiled in a collaboration between AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology and the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute (USCTI), totaled $207.8 million in May 2025. Orders decreased 2.3% from April 2025 and 5% from May 2024. Year-to-date shipments totaled $1.03 billion, a drop of 5.1% from the same period in 2024.

“This summer, everyone is playing wait and see,” said Jack Burley, chairman of AMT’s Cutting Tool Product Group. “No one is investing in new production unless they have the security of a long-term project, such as for the defense industry, where cost is less important than delivery. Demand from the automotive market is weak, and the supply chain is getting squeezed by tariffs while vehicle manufacturers protect their bottom line. When we closely check the cutting tool data, unit cost appears to have increased slightly since January, most likely due to price increases. However, it’s too early to establish a trend with variables like surcharges to know the real costs. I don’t know who will win the wait-and-see game, but I hope it works out for everyone soon.”

Costikyan Jarvis, president of Jarvis Cutting Tools, said: “Sales of cutting tools through May reveal a controlled retreat rather than a collapse. The 5% drop in year-over-year numbers is consistent with the PMI falling below 50 from March through May. Taken in context with other financial metrics like capacity utilization, new vehicle sales, and civilian aircraft production, the second half of this year will likely see a rebound in demand. In short, the cutting tool market remains under pressure, but forward-looking industrial indicators hint that the worst of the pullback may be passing.”

The Cutting Tool Market Report is jointly compiled by AMT and USCTI, two trade associations representing the development, production, and distribution of cutting tool technology and products. It provides a monthly statement on U.S. manufacturers’ consumption of the primary consumable in the manufacturing process, the cutting tool. Analysis of cutting tool consumption is a leading indicator of both upturns and downturns in U.S. manufacturing activity, as it is a true measure of actual production levels.

For more information, visit www.amtonline.org.