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CMI hits 26-month high

NACM’s Credit Managers’ Index (CMI) hit a 26-month high in November, jumping 2.4 points to 55.3. “The strength in the index comes primarily from improved sales revenue, but dollars collected on due and past-due invoices also improved markedly as did the dollar amount of credit extended,” said NACM Economist Amy Crews Cutts, Ph.D., CBE.
 |  Annacaroline Caruso, CICP, director of communications  |  ,

NACM’s Credit Managers’ Index (CMI) hit a 26-month high in November, jumping 2.4 points to 55.3. “The strength in the index comes primarily from improved sales revenue, but dollars collected on due and past-due invoices also improved markedly as did the dollar amount of credit extended,” said NACM Economist Amy Crews Cutts, Ph.D., CBE.

The index of favorable factors improved 4.9 points to 62.3. Every factor within the index improved. Dollar sales led the growth with a 7.6-point jump to 63.4.

The index of unfavorable factors rose back into expansion after one month below 50. The index sits at 50.5, up 0.6 points from last month’s value. Accounts placed for collection is at 47.1 this month, its 27th month in contraction. This means the number of accounts placed for collection has increased every month for more than two years.

“Weather events in October definitely left a mark, whether on the negative side due to massive damage to large swaths of the South in areas where there is a lot of manufacturing, or to the plus side due to the sudden demand for products and services to manage the repairs to these areas,” said Cutts.

What CMI respondents are saying:

  • “Our sales dollars are higher, mostly due to the efforts in North Carolina. Our sales in other areas are flat.”
  • “While receivables continue to be strong, several customers have warned that they will be late or unable to pay the full amount of open invoices as they become due unless the retail landscape improves.”
  • “Overall, business is trending downward, marking an approximate 5% annual decrease.”
  • “October was our slowest month since 2017, but it appears our backlog is finally growing so fingers crossed.”
  • “Portfolio risk is increasing.”
  • “First month after several months without weather-related impacts on sales and payments.”
  • “Sales were up but not markedly—just above being flat. Collections were up considerably as a reflection of a fairly robust August. We’ve seen an uptick in mergers and acquisitions.”

The December CMI Survey opens on Monday, Dec. 9. Sign up now to receive a notification when the Survey is ready to be completed. You can view the full November CMI report here.

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Annacaroline Caruso, CICP, director of communications

Annacaroline graduated from Boston University in 2019 with a degree in Journalism. Her career has taken her from Dublin, Ireland to South Bend, Indiana before returning home to Baltimore, Maryland. She joined the NACM family in 2021 and helped launch the Extra Credit podcast. Annacaroline is passionate about creating content for B2B credit managers and using her storytelling skills to raise awareness about the profession. She invites story ideas at annacarolinec@nacm.org.