Over the past several years, the U.S. fastener industry has experienced a mixed set of economic trends. Shipments by the industry peaked in 1979, but were generally depressed in the early 1980's, largely due to poor performances in the end-user markets such as automobiles. The most recent years have shown modest improvement as the general economy rebounded. Employment fell sharply in the early 1980's but since then has recovered somewhat and expanded by over 15 percent. Investment in new plant and equipment in the fastener industry has been highly variable but increasing in recent years.
Imports come mainly from the Pacific Rim Countries.
Japan, although still the largest supplier of imports, has lost market share to Taiwan and South Korea, which have lower labor costs and more favorable exchange rates relative to the dollar. Further increases in import penetration are expected to be more gradual since gains would have to be in specialty fastener markets where price is less important than quality, delivery time, customer specific requirements, and in some cases advanced production capabilities. U.S. firms remain highly competitive in these specialty markets and have the advantage of proximity to end-users. One important trend over the 1979 to 1986 period is the fact that the number of fastener producing plants in the United States has increased. This trend demonstrates the effect imports have had on the industry.