Retailers, pressed to find qualified individuals at all skill levels, have changed their incentives and recruiting procedures to attract new employees. Some manufacturers report a long-term problem in hiring people with a strong electronics background. Job security continues to be a high concern for unions, whose success in obtaining more job security provisions and longer contracts has been mixed. Manufacturing Production has increased, and new orders continue at the high levels of previous months. Inventories may have risen, largely because of a planned effort to balance production with increased demand.
Firms report no price pressure in raw materials, with smaller increases than in previous months.
Back orders have also increased. Auto suppliers report strong sales, although intense competition for their product is keeping prices low. In general, conditions in the chemical industry are good. Several of them have recently expanded their capacity. Many companies are feeling the effects of the currency crisis in Asia, where aggressive pricing is increasing competition for manufacturers of chemical raw materials, while benefiting companies who use these materials to manufacture more specialized chemicals and plastics.