WOLF will use KBI to provide a concrete measure of how building materials buyers see the near-term future of the residential construction industry. The initial KBI score, 79.8, reveals a bullish outlook for the coming month.
WOLF gathers data for the KBI from a monthly survey of key buyers at independent building materials dealers in WOLF’s 18-state sales territory. The initial survey, from the week of March 23, found that 63.8% of respondents reported their purchasing would increase over the following four weeks, 31.9% said purchasing would remain about the same, and 4.3% said their purchasing would decline.
Based on these responses, WOLF calculated the initial Key Buyer Index at 79.8. A WOLF KBI score of 50 reflects a neutral outlook; a score above 50 reflects a positive outlook; and a score below 50 reflects a negative outlook.
Tom Wolf, WOLF CEO and creator of the new industry metric, said that the initial KBI indicates optimism for April among buyers – the group best positioned to offer an informed assessment.
“WOLF maintains ongoing communications and close relationships with hundreds of independent dealers,” Wolf said. “The WOLF KBI captures their near-term sentiment in a statistically significant way. We can share this new and compelling leading indicator of building activity with dealers, manufacturers, builders, the trade media and others.”
Wolf noted that the company calculates the KBI using a formula similar to the monthly Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), a highly anticipated monthly indicator developed by the Institute for Supply Management in 1948.
WOLF will survey its customers and publish the Key Buyer Index each month in an effort to forecast industry sentiment and identify trends. WOLF will also develop a workable set of statistical adjustments for the index to reflect seasonal, market and product category variations.
For more information on the WOLF Key Buyer Index, read the detailed explanation on Tom Wolf’s blog or see the latest KBI score at www.wolfleader.com.
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About Wolf WOLF’s roots stretch back to 1843, when company founder Adam Wolf opened a single store selling dry goods and lumber on the banks of the Susquehanna River. Today, the York, Pa.-based company formerly known as Wolf Distributing Company has evolved into WOLF, a nearly $200 million distributor of kitchen and bath cabinetry and building materials to 18 East Coast states. For more information, visit www.wolfleader.com.
