June momentum: Orders hit $672.7 million in June 2026, up 15.6% from May and 56.8% from June 2025.
- Value over volume: The number of machines ordered fell 2.6% versus the second half of 2025 even as order value reached record levels.
- Sector drivers: Aerospace posted its largest half-year machinery orders on record in both value and units, while power generation orders surged on AI infrastructure energy demand.
- Elevated outlook: Oxford Economics forecasts a 1.5% increase in the second half of 2026, bringing the yearly total to nearly $7 billion ahead of IMTS.
Manufacturing Technology Orders Report published by AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology.
Record-Breaking Numbers
New orders of metalworking machinery totaled $672.7 million in June 2026 — a 15.6% increase from May 2026 and a 56.8% increase over June 2025. For the first half of 2026, manufacturing technology orders totaled $3.44 billion, a 36.0% increase over the first half of 2025.
Notably, value outpaced volume. While the dollar figure hit unprecedented levels, the number of machines ordered in the first half of 2026 was 2.6% lower than in the second half of 2025 — a signal that manufacturers are investing in higher-value equipment.
Aerospace Leads the Surge
The aerospace sector ordered the most machinery in the first half of 2026 on record, in both value and units. Orders were nearly one-third higher than in the latter half of 2025, and units were up by nearly a quarter.
Meanwhile, engine, turbine, and power transmission equipment manufacturers accelerated their manufacturing technology orders to alleviate energy demand from AI infrastructure.
Resilience Amid Headwinds
The manufacturing economy remained resilient despite challenges including the war between the United States and Iran, rising inflation, and trade-war-accelerated supply challenges.
Looking ahead, a forecast delivered by Oxford Economics at AMT's Summer Economic Forum calls for orders to remain elevated in the second half of 2026, with an increase of 1.5% — bringing total orders for the year to nearly $7 billion. The outlook arrives as IMTS – The International Manufacturing Technology Show approaches, giving the industry a timely stage to take stock of a historic run.
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