Though the figure was an improvement from May, US manufacturing is still a concern, said Douglas K. Woods, AMT president. “There was noteworthy activity in the aerospace, off road/highway construction, automotive and contract machining industries, but if not for a dozen or so standout orders from those industries, it could have been another down month.”

The economic uncertainty of the US and international markets are both causing concern, leading to investors’ hesitation when it comes to investing in capital equipment, he explained, and pointed out that opportunities still remain within several core industry sectors.