November machine tool orders were 1,925 units and $320,026,000.November machine tool unit orders increased 0.3% compared with one year ago, marking the third consecutive month of growth. November was the first quarter of quarter-over-quarter growth since March 2019. As a result, the annual rate of contraction decelerated for the fourth straight month to its slowest rate of contraction since January 2020. 

While unit orders increased compared with one year ago, dollar orders increased at a slightly faster rate of 1.9%. Therefore, the dollar price of machine tools increased by 1.6% compared with one year ago, which was the first increase in price since March 2020. The annual rate of contraction in dollar orders decelerated for the third month in a row. Also, units and dollars both grew in the South Central region.

November was positive largely due to orders in the North Central-West. Unit orders in the region increased 24.1% compared with one year ago. November was the fourth straight month of unit order growth faster than 20% in the region. Dollar orders increased by 54.8% in November, which was the third straight month of growth. 

Compared with one year ago, the GBI: Metalworking grew 11.2%, which was the fifth consecutive month of growth and the fastest rate of growth since December 2017. The annual rate of contraction in the GBI decelerated for the sixth consecutive month and tends to bottom out 7-10 months prior to machine tool orders bottoming out. However, it is clear that the annual rate of change in machine tool orders has already bottomed ahead of schedule.