AIA Statistics- Economic Indicators

First Quarter 2006

Like New Year's Day morning, the first quarter usually suffers from the revelry of the fourth quarter, but not so this year. 2005's order boom continued in the first quarter of 2006. Despite declining 28%, aerospace orders totaled $62 billion—the second highest quarter on record. Similarly, aerospace corporations posted record profits despite a 6.6% decline in overall sales. Interestingly, foreign sales (i.e., exports) rose 7.6% to a record $20 billion, implying domestic sales fell sharply during the quarter. Employment, pacing the backlog of unfilled orders, continued to grow. Nearly across the board, the first quarter's indicators exuded continued strength.

In Billions of Current Dollars	1Q 2006	4Q 2005	% Change 4Q05 to 1Q06	1Q 2005	2005 Year-End	2004 Year-End
Aerospace Sales	$49.71	$53.21	-6.6%	$46.19	$197.40	$184.42
Profits	$3.46	$2.86	21.0%	$3.31	$12.69	$9.50
Orders	$61.93	$86.41	-28.3%	$35.85	$219.41	$143.92
Exports--Total	$19.75	$18.35	7.6%	$14.44	$67.43	$56.82
Exports--Civil	$16.92	$15.48	9.3%	$12.44	$57.23	$47.33
Exports--Military	$2.83	$2.87	-1.4%	$2.00	$10.21	$9.49
Employment (in thousands)	626	623	0.4%	602	627	605

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