Manufacturing sales fell for the second consecutive month, down 1.4% in March to $71.9 billion. Sales decreased in 13 of the 21 subsectors, led by the primary metal (-6.5%) and petroleum and coal product (-4.2%) subsectors. These declines were partly offset by an 11.9% increase in sales of furniture and related products. Year over year, total manufacturing sales were up 1.9% in March.
In constant dollars, total sales declined 1.1% in March, while the Industrial Product Price Index rose 0.5%.
On a quarterly basis, sales increased 1.6% to $217.9 billion in the first quarter, following a 1.1% rise in the fourth quarter of 2024. The transportation equipment (+5.0%) and primary metal (+8.5%) subsectors contributed the most to the gain in the first quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, sales of chemical products posted the largest quarterly decline, down 3.6% to $15.8 billion.
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