•U.S. manufactures of Outdoor Lighting Equipment registers a 10.7% increase in sales during 1997. Sales were estimated to have advanced by 6.4% in 1998 to $1.87 billion and by 6.3% to nearly $2.0 billion in 1999E.

• Eight states are home to 63% of all U.S. based lighting fixtures plants: California (257 plants); New York (124 plants); Illinois (76 plants); Pennsylvania (71 plants); Florida (60 plants); Ohio (57 plants); and Texas and New Jersey (51 plants).

•The U. S. Lighting Fixtures Market rose at a healthy average yearly rate of 6.5% for the 27 years from 1972-1997. This pace has improved from an average 9.1% from 1992 to 1997 to a 9.4% clip from 1994 to 1999E.

•In conjunction with a strong economy, buoyant new construction activity and historically low interest rates, Economic Industry Reports, Inc. estimated a 9.2% rise in the market to nearly $10.1 billion in 1998.

•A further 10.7% surge is called for in 1999 as sales top $11.1 billion. Projected market growth to 2004 should reach $15.0 billion, as compound average yearly growth slows to a 6.1%.

•Economic Industry Reports, Inc. calls for an estimated 6.9% increase in domestic shipments to $8.45 billion in 1998, followed by a 5.3% rise in 1999E to 8.9 billion. This deceleration in domestic shipments is directly related to a more than 27% surge in imports for 1999E as indicated by the first six months actual data.

•Yearly domestic dollar growth for the proceeding five years is projected as 5.0%, reaching $11.36 billion. Such sales will be driven by above average compound annual growth in the Outdoor Lighting Equipment category (up 5.8%) and the Residential Lighting Fixtures sector, up 5.5%.

•Industry exports are projected to grow at a yearly 6.1% rate from 1999 to 2004 reaching $585.0 million, but representing only 5.2% of all domestic shipments. More than half of 1998's exports of lighting fixtures (52%) were consumed by NAFTA partners Canada and Mexico.

•In 1998, industry imports continued their double-digit surge, rising 14.0% to nearly $2.2 billion and are estimated to soar another 27.2% in 1999 to nearly $2.8 billion or 24.8% of apparent consumption. China remained the dominant importer in 1998, garnering a 49.3% share of all industry imports as sales soared by 10.6% to $1,072 million.

•With federal appropriations in place for infrastructure repair, and the effects of several weather related disasters in 1999 growth, further feeding demand, a 5.8% average yearly pace is projected for the five years from 1999-2004, pushing this category to a value of $2.63 billion.

•Since 1990, producers of lighting fixtures have limited the price hikes to less than 2%, in line with the low inflationary economic climate.

• For 1995, price tags rose by 2.8%, nearly triple the rate of the previous year. Price gains then moderated in 1996 to a manageable 1.0% and posted virtually no increases in 1997. In 1998 prices declined fractionally, and in 1999E, price rises were minimal.

•During 1998, producer prices declined by 0.2% in the Commercial and Institutional, and Industrial lighting fixtures segments. In contrast, the Residential Lighting Fixtures sector rose by 0.2%. The greatest price decline was reported by the Lighting Fixtures and Other Equipment segments -0.9%.

•According to the National Association of Home Builders', October 1999, housing starts will cyclically rise 2.6% to 1,666,000 in 1999, followed by a -7.8% decrease in 2000 to 1,536,000.