December highlights:
Global design and sourcing activities decreased in December after experiencing some level of stability the last three months. Decrease in month-over-month activities were expected due to the holiday seasons. However, the actual month-over-month decrease in activities this year was larger than expected, indicating further contraction in global demand this December.
Global design activities decreased by -15% month-over-month (vs. -8% seasonal average), while global sourcing activities decreased by -21% month-over-month (vs. -9% seasonal average).
Q4 2023 highlights:
Q4 activity levels were in line with our quarterly forecast. Global design activities grew +7% quarter-over-quarter (vs. +7% forecast), while global sourcing activities decreased -7% quarter-over-quarter (vs. -6% forecast).
2023 full year:
For the full year, global design activities grew +6% vs. 2022, while global sourcing activities decreased -25% vs. 2022.
Q1 2024 outlook:
We expect Q1 2024 to show positive trends in global design and sourcing activities, growing +2% to +3% quarter-over-quarter. The first half of 2024 is expected to remain somewhat slower with modest growth rates. We expect the second half of the calendar year to post stronger growth across regions and product categories.
