As 2025 comes to a close, West Michigan’s economy shows signs of continued “softening,” according to data collected by a Grand Valley State University researcher.
Brian Long, director of supply chain management research at Grand Valley’s Seidman College of Business, said his monthly survey of the region’s purchasing managers and firms points to ongoing strain in the industrial sector.
“Adding up our survey data for November for the West Michigan industrial economy, it was kind of disappointing to see a sharp drop in new orders, which we also call our index of business improvement,” Long said.
“Our production index also took a sharp downturn, as did several of our other measures. Now one month does not make a trend, but we need to keep a closer watch on all of our statistics going forward.”
Long added that other economic indicators are equally concerning. Michigan’s unemployment rate ranks third highest in the nation, trailing only California and Nevada, and his index of business confidence flipped to negative in November amid rising pessimism and uncertainty surrounding tariffs.
“The navigation of all these tariffs is taking a toll on some of our people, as is the news cycle, which tends to be somewhat negative right now,” Long said.
“For the firms that have to import a lot of their production materials, they are getting squeezed in both directions. The costs are rising, and they often can't get the seller to pick up even part of the tab.”
Here’s a look at the key index results from November’s survey of West Michigan purchasing managers:
- New orders index (business improvement): -20 vs. -4 in October
- Production index (output): -23 vs. +4 in October
- Employment index: -22 vs. +2 in October
- Lead times index: +4 vs. -4 in October
More information about the survey and an archive of past surveys are available on the Seidman College of Business website .
