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From Home Furnishing Business
Furniture Factory Orders Flat in January; Shipments Up 2%
March 31,
2017 by Larry Thomas in Business Strategy, Economic News, Industry 
Furniture factory orders in January were essentially even with January 2016, but shipments for the first month of 2017 were up 2%, according to the latest monthly survey from the accounting and consulting firm Smith Leonard.
The rather sluggish January followed a brisk November and December, in which factory orders were up 8% and 11%, respectively, compared with the same months in the previous year. November and December shipments rose 4% and 15%, respectively.
Smith Leonard said 54% of survey participants reported a year-over-year increase in orders in January, down from 71% in December.
The January figures were recorded despite a number of positive economic indicators, including housing, inflation, the stock market, consumer confidence and employment.
In the monthly Furniture Insights newsletter accompanying the survey results, Smith Leonard managing partner Ken Smith said some consumers may still be reluctant to spend money on big-ticket purchases such as furniture because of concerns about health insurance, taxes, and state and federal politics.
"And we believe that though consumers may feel good about prospects, that is different than spending their own money," Smith wrote. "As we have noted before, we continue to believe spending habits have also changed since the recession. We believe many are not yet convinced that it is ok to spend on nonessentials,"
Despite that, Smith said he remains upbeat about 2017. "The strong consumer confidence, along with the other positives, should lead to a decent 2017," he wrote.