THE COMEBACK TRAIL:

Gears of economy get machine tool sales moving (RICK BARRETT, Aug. 12, 2004, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

From January through June, the U.S. had $1.25 billion in machine-tool sales, up 31.9% from the first six months of 2003, according to the Association for Manufacturing Technology in McLean, Va.

The strongest machine tool sales were in the Midwest, where companies spent more than $500 million on equipment. That was up 36.6% from the first six months of 2003, when the industry was crawling from the bottom of the recession.

"Absolutely we get a sense that capital spending is coming back," said Robert Gardner, a vice president with the AMT.