“December is not a seasonally significant month,” said Brian Loftus, HARDI market research and benchmarking analyst. “The decline is associated with very strong prior year sales and one less billing day this year. That is difficult to overcome.”

Since 2011, after recovering from the recession, 5.3 percent growth is the slowest calendar year, according to Loftus.

“This is somewhat at odds with the other strong signs we see, like the positive slope to the leading indicators,” said Connor Lokar, HARDI senior economist. “HARDI members did post strong growth in November and December 2016 and January 2017, so they set themselves up with some tall bars to clear. The decelerating growth is a noteworthy trend to watch.”

The Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), a measure of how quickly customers pay their bills, is near 45 days.

“The DSO is at the midpoint of recent performance for this time of year,” said Loftus. “Softer sales helped the dip from last month. We would welcome an extra day or two in the months ahead because it would be normal seasonal pattern and indicate resumption of sales growth.”

Publication date: 2/12/2018