MAPI — Manufacturers Alliance News and Reports — Brexit Risks & Possibilities and More

Issues in the Brief

Can the Euro Be Saved?
Kris evaluates four types of proposals aimed at solving the EMU’s various crises and argues that only one stands a realistic chance of implementation in the next decade. He also delves into individual policy planks and assesses their chances of adoption, concluding that the common currency faces long odds of survival beyond the next few years.

Total Shareholder Return Paints an Incomplete Picture
Total shareholder return (TSR)—the sum of dividend yield and share price appreciation—is widely used by boards and governance committees because of rising pressure in the investment community, increased investor activism, watchdogs such as ISS, and say-on-pay practices. Many boards are tying pay to TSR without realizing that it can be misleading and opaque.

No More Free Passes: GDP & Other Data
The second quarter benefited from strong consumer spending growth, but investment weakness and export weakness are holding back US economic growth and manufacturing. Waiting for an upswing in the economy is not an option because the root problems are not cyclical. Smart and persistent investments are the way forward.

Decision Criteria for New Technology Investment
In the case of new technology investment, the cost side of the return-on-investment equation contains a larger and broader set of factors than is the case with a fixed technology frontier, under which all technologies are known as previously employed capital. But the benefits of a new technology investment are potentially as broad as the costs. In essence, the diffusion implications of the cost–benefit balance for new technology investment depend on corporate decision-maker flexibility regarding the payback period of the investment and an adjustment to the propensity to take a wait-and-see posture toward purchase and implementation.

Q&A: Brexit’s Risks and Possibilities
Cliff Waldman discusses MAPI member reactions to the Brexit, London’s status as a financial center, market reactions, changes in regulatory structure, and the effects of monetary policy accommodation.

Economic Update

Automation Investment in U.S. Manufacturing: An Empirical Picture
Cliff analyzes the results of a national survey of US manufacturers that was designed to produce data on their automation investment behavior. His report offers a revealing look at the extent of automation investment, short-term plans, the relationship of automation to a broader corporate technology strategy, drivers of automation activity and the criterion that manufacturers use for evaluating new automation capital. The report also offers stratifications of survey results by size and industry.

U.S. Industrial Outlook: Shaking Off the Shocks
We lowered our forecast for manufacturing production to only 0.4% growth in 2016. The negative effects of high inventories, the strong dollar and low commodity prices have eased but are still a drag on growth. We now predict that manufacturing will not fully recover from the recession until the third quarter of 2018.