[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 15, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Page 8804]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-3496]



[[Page 8804]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of 
information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 
U.S.C. chapter 35).
    Agency: U.S. Census Bureau.
    Title: Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3) 
Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0607-0008.
    Form Number(s): M-3(SD).
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Burden Hours: 17,200.
    Number of Respondents: 4,300.
    Average Hours Per Response: 20 minutes.
    Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census Bureau is requesting an extension 
of the currently approved collection for the Manufacturers' Shipments, 
Inventories, and Orders (M3) survey. This survey collects monthly data 
from domestic manufacturers on Form M-3 (SD), which is mailed at the 
end of each month. Data requested are shipments, new orders, unfilled 
orders, and inventories by stage of fabrication. The M3 is currently 
the only survey that provides broad-based monthly statistical data on 
the economic conditions in the domestic manufacturing sector. The 
survey is designed to measure current industrial activity and to 
provide an indication of future production commitments. The value of 
shipments measures the value of goods delivered during the month by 
domestic manufacturers. Estimates of new orders serve as an indicator 
of future production commitments and represent the current sales value 
of new orders received during the month, net of cancellations. 
Substantial accumulation or depletion of backlogs of unfilled orders 
measures excess (or deficient) demand for manufactured products. The 
level of inventories, especially in relation to shipments, is 
frequently used to monitor the business cycle.
    This survey provides an essential component of the current economic 
indicators needed for assessing the evolving status of the economy and 
formulating economic policy. The Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has designated this 
survey as a principal federal economic indicator. The shipments and 
inventory data are essential inputs to the gross domestic product 
(GDP), while the orders data are direct inputs to the leading economic 
indicator series. The GDP and the economic indicator series would be 
incomplete without these data. The survey also provides valuable and 
timely domestic manufacturing data for economic planning and analysis 
to business firms, trade associations, research and consulting 
agencies, and academia.
    The data are used for analyzing short- and long-term trends, both 
in the manufacturing sector and as related to other sectors of the 
economy. The data on value of shipments, especially when adjusted for 
change in inventory, measure current levels of production. New orders 
figures serve as an indicator of future production commitments. Changes 
in the level of unfilled orders, because of excess or shortfall of new 
orders compared with shipments, are used to measure the excess (or 
deficiency) in the demand for manufactured products. Changes in the 
level of inventories and the relation of these to shipments are used to 
project future movements in manufacturing activity. These statistics 
are valuable for analysts of business cycle conditions including 
members of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), the Bureau of 
Economic Analysis (BEA), the Federal Reserve Board (FRB), the 
Department of the Treasury, business firms, trade associations, private 
research and consulting agencies, and the academic community.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.
    Frequency: Monthly.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Legal Authority: Title 13, United States Code, Sections 131, 182, 
193, and 224.
    OMB Desk Officer: Brian Harris-Kojetin, (202) 395-7314.
    Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained 
by calling or writing Jennifer Jessup, Departmental Paperwork Clearance 
Officer, (202) 482-0336, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th and 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at 
[email protected]).
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to Brian Harris-Kojetin, OMB Desk Officer either by fax ((202) 395-
7245) or email ([email protected]).

    Dated: February 10, 2012.
Glenna Mickelson,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2012-3496 Filed 2-14-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P