Economy | Industrial Distribution

Envelopes from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Reemployment Assistance Program are shown in this photo from Nov. 5 in Surfside, FL.

US Economy Outlook Troublesome Amid Surging Virus

Data suggests the ongoing virus spread increasingly threatens an economy still struggling to recover from the early spring.

On the Rebound: ID's Big 50 COVID Update

Here’s what ID’s Big 50 List distributors have been saying lately about pandemic's ongoing business impacts.

Distributor Pandemic Index Holds Steady Despite Component Variation

The index showed a modest year-over-year gain for the holiday-shortened selling week of Thanksgiving.

President-elect Joe Biden at an event to introduce nominees and appointees to economic policy posts, The Queen theater, Wilmington, Del., Dec. 1, 2020.

Biden Says He Won't Immediately Lift China Tariffs

A construction worker walks down a staircase in the scaffolding of TSX Broadway under construction on Oct. 29 in New York's Times Square.

US Construction Spending Continues Climb, Up 1.3% in October

Pedestrians walk in front of the Galeries Lafayette department store illuminated as part of Christmas lightings, in Paris.

Glimmers of Hope for World Economy, but Dangers Lurk

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American Factories Growing More Slowly

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Mexico Planning $11.5B in Infrastructure Projects

The majority of the plans are for highways, energy and water projects.

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Five Key Factors in Planning for a Post-COVID 'Normal'

It’s important to reflect and remember that difficult circumstances can trigger meaningful change.

A shopper in a face mask looks over cuts of beef piled up in a cold room for purchase at a Costco warehouse store Tuesday, May 5, 2020, in west Denver. The U.S. economy rebounded at an even-stronger pace in the July-September quarter than first reported but a resurgence in the coronavirus is expected to slow growth sharply in the current quarter with some analysts even raising the specter of a double-dip recession.

US Economy Grew 33.1% in Q3

But a resurgence in the coronavirus is expected to slow growth sharply in the current quarter.

Rows of boxed big-screen televisions sit on display at a Costco warehouse in this photograph taken Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2020, in Sheridan, Colo. Orders for big-ticket manufactured goods slow to modest gain of 1.3% in October indicating economy is slowing.

Durable Goods Up a Modest 1.3%

Orders for commercial aircraft rose 38.8%, but that comes after months of weakness.

In this Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020 file photo, manager Yllka Murati waits for a delivery driver to pick up takeout orders behind a partition displaying a sign to remind customers to wear a mask, at the Penrose Diner, in south Philadelphia.

Keep the Mask: A Vaccine Won't End the US Crisis Right Away

The first, limited shipments of the vaccine would mark just the beginning of what could be a long and messy road toward the end of the pandemic.

Online educational company Test Prep Insight CEO John Ross and his team.

Business Owners Upbeat About Vaccine, Wary as Virus Spreads

Owners realize many hurdles remain.

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Distributor Pandemic Index Continues Up-and-Down Pattern

The index followed one of its best weeks since the pandemic started with a return to the negative.

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September US Cutting Tool Orders Up 15% From August, Sparking Optimism

Though still down 20 percent year-over-year, the market's continued recovery has been far better than anticipated during the spring.

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American Timber Industry Crippled

It was a double whammy: a trade war and COVID-19.

Line workers put together ventilators at the Ford Rawsonville plant in Ypsilanti Township, Mich., May 13, 2020.

Industrial Production Largely Recovers from Spring Decline

Production rose 1.1% in October but still remains below pre-pandemic levels.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador gives his daily news conference at the presidential palace in Mexico City, Oct. 16, 2020.

Mexican President Presents Bill to Ban Outsourcing of Jobs

The measure would prohibit subcontracting or outsourcing by private companies except with government authorization.

Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Sept. 24, 2020.

Central Bankers Say Economy Needs Help Despite Vaccine News

The chairman of the Federal Reserve said Congress "may need to do more."