Non-Auto Sector Pulls Economy Down in April, Comerica Reports

    DETROIT, May 3 Members of the National Association of
Purchasing Managers-Metro Detroit, surveyed in April by Detroit-based Comerica
Bank, reported a 4.3-point decrease from March in overall business conditions
for Southeast Michigan's industrial economy.
    Comerica's composite index stood at 35.7 in April, compared with 40.0 in
March.  A year earlier, the index stood at 51.1.  "New order and production
activity in the auto sector expanded in April, but these gains were more than
offset by sharper contraction in the non-auto sector," said David L. Littmann,
chief economist with Comerica Bank.  "Dramatic runoff in non-auto inventories
in April is similar to massive corrections in the auto sector earlier this
year, and hopefully is a prelude to stability overall next quarter."
    The index is a seasonally-adjusted, weighted average measure of new orders
and production activity, employment, inventories, and promptness of supplier
deliveries.  It ranges from zero to 100.  A composite index below 50 generally
means conditions are deteriorating; levels above 50 denote expansion.

                                AUTO           NON-AUTO           TOTAL
                            MARCH   APRIL    MARCH   APRIL    MARCH   APRIL

    NAPM-MD
    Composite Index          32.5    43.7     50.2    31.2     40.0    35.7

         Production          38.1    54.5     44.1    31.6     40.8    40.0
         New Orders          31.0    50.0     68.8    28.9     47.3    36.7
         Inventories         42.9    45.5     58.8    26.3     50.0    33.3
         Employment          16.7    31.8     30.6    34.2     23.1    33.3
         Vendor Performance  47.6    45.5     52.8    44.7     50.0    45.0
         Prices              42.5    45.5     52.8    47.4     47.4    46.7

    Weighting                53.8    36.7     46.2    63.3    100.0   100.0

    Comerica's composite index is based on surveys of local purchasing
managers belonging to the 500-member National Association of Purchasing
Managers-Metro Detroit.
    Comerica Bank, the oldest and largest bank in Michigan, is a subsidiary of
Comerica Incorporated , a multi-state financial services provider
headquartered in Detroit, with banking subsidiaries in Michigan, California,
and Texas, banking operations in Florida, and businesses in several other
states.  Comerica has an investment services affiliate, Munder Capital
Management, and operates banking subsidiaries in Canada and Mexico.

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