State of the Industry

摘要

As 2006 winds clown, it is interesting to assess the roller-coaster ride that the industry has been on this year. While the year started very strong, and production and profits soared, the end of the summer brought a bit of a slowdown, especially in residential construction markets -and predictions of economic stability, but little growth. Nowhere is this more evident than in The Pit & Quarry Index, which since 2004 has gauged the economic health of the industry. The index began the year hovering above the 200 mark before rising to 233 in August - its highest showing ever. September was a different story, however, as the index plummeted to the 200 level, before spiking up again the following month. National stone-production statistics are always a key market indicator. Second-quarter numbers - the most current available at press time - took a slight dip, although six-month numbers still look Strong.