According to the International Sign Association’s (ISA’s) Sign Industry Quarterly Economic Report for the second quarter, the U.S. economy is expected to come roaring back with a 33 per cent gross domestic product (GDP) gain in the third quarter.
According to the International Sign Association’s (ISA’s) Sign Industry Quarterly Economic Report for the second quarter, the U.S. economy is expected to come roaring back with a 33 per cent gross domestic product (GDP) gain in the third quarter.
The report shows the growth will fade to 3.7 per cent in the fourth quarter as catch-up spending wanes, fiscal support dissipates, and COVID-19 infections remain high. Overall, 2020 will feature a 3.7 per cent contraction in GDP.
Globally the rebound is much more uneven. The world GDP is expected to fall 4.8 per cent in 2020, its steepest decline since 1946.
The report, which is sponsored by the National Association of Sign Supply Distributors (NASSD), assesses four segments of the industry: two supplier markets (printing and electrical/digital signage) and two end markets (electric/digital signage and architectural signage). It also forecasts commodities.
Highlights of the report include:
- London, U.K.-based global information provider IHS Markit assumes a vaccine will be available by mid-2021, allowing the recovery to progress. It projects growth of 3.7 per cent in 2021 and 3.2 per cent in 2022.
- IHS recommends waiting on lumber purchases, with prices falling in the first quarter of 2021. Wildfires in the western U.S. could affect supply and drive prices up.
- For the sign industry markets specifically, IHS has improved its outlook for 2020. The analysts expect a stronger rebound in some sectors of the economy.
- Weakness in the fundamentals on the end-market side of the industry will cause these segments to trail the supply side in speed of recovery for the remainder of 2020. The impact of the pandemic in shifting sign needs remains uncertain.
