In keeping with a general slowdown in Georgia’s manufacturing sector, the state’s foreign-owned businesses also experienced a slight drop in their activity during the second quarter following a first quarter uptick.
Don Sabbarese, director of the Econometric Center at Kennesaw State University, said in an Aug. 15 news release that the downturn was due to decreases in both employment and capital spending.
These factors offset increases in new orders and production, according to the Georgia International Business Index (GIBI), which is compiled by Dr. Sabbarese and published by the Michael J. Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State.
The index reported a 2.3-point drop in the second quarter, which followed a significant first-quarter jump of 8.9 points, the first increase since early 2012.
In the first quarter, the GIBI was 57.8, up from 49 in the fourth quarter 2012, indicating that manufacturing activity by foreign firms was expanding in the state. In the second quarter, however, there was a drop from 57.8 down to 55.5 points.
