U.S. Manufacturing: New Orders, Production, Employment Growing
 Print this article | Send to Colleague
Economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector expanded in December, following one month of contraction, and the overall economy grew for the 43rd consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The report was issued by Bradley J. Holcomb, CPSM, CPSD, chair of the Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing Business Survey Committee., Tempe, Ariz.
The PMI registered 50.7%, an increase of 1.2 percentage points from November's reading of 49.5%, indicating expansion in manufacturing for only the third time in the last seven months. This month's PMI reading moved manufacturing off its low point for 2012 in November. The New Orders Index remained at 50.3%, the same rate as in November, indicating growth in new orders for the fourth consecutive month. The Production Index registered 52.6%, a decrease of 1.1 percentage points, indicating growth in production for the third consecutive month. The Employment Index registered 52.7%, an increase of 4.3 percentage points, indicating a resumption of growth in employment following only one month of contraction since September 2009. Both the Exports and Imports Indexes registered 51.5%, returning both indexes to growth territory following consecutive periods of contraction of six and four months, respectively.
Of the 18 manufacturing industries, seven are reporting growth in December in the following order: Furniture & Related Products; Paper Products; Petroleum and Coal Products; Wood Products; Primary Metals; Computer and Electronic Products; and Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Products. The nine industries reporting contraction in December (in order) are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Chemical Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Plastics and Rubber Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Transportation Equipment; Machinery; Electrical Equipment, Appliances and Components; and Apparel, Leather, and Allied Products.
The five industries reporting growth in new orders in December are: Apparel, Leather, and Allied Products; Primary Metals; Furniture and Related Products; Paper Products; and Computer and Electronic Products. The 10 industries reporting a decrease in new orders during December (in order) are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Printing and Related Support Activities; Plastics and Rubber Products; Chemical Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances, and Components; Machinery; Fabricated Metal Products; Transportation Equipment; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; and Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Products.
The five industries reporting growth in production during the month of December are: Furniture and Related Products; Petroleum and Coal Products; Paper Products; Primary Metals; and Computer and Electronic Products. The seven industries reporting a decrease in production in December (in order) are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Chemical Products; Machinery; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Products; Fabricated Metal Products; and Apparel, Leather, and Allied Products.
Of the 18 manufacturing industries, nine reported growth in employment in December in the following order: Petroleum and Coal Products; Wood Products; Printing and Related Support Activities; Paper Products; Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Products; Furniture and Related Products; Chemical Products; Computer and Electronic Products; and Electrical Equipment, Appliances, and Components. The seven industries reporting a decrease in employment in December (in order) are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Apparel, Leather, and Allied Products; Transportation Equipment; Plastics and Rubber Products; Machinery; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; and Fabricated Metal Products.
The seven industries reporting growth in new export orders in December (in order) are: Petroleum and Coal Products; Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Products; Primary Metals; Fabricated Metal Products; Paper Products; Computer and Electronic Products; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing. The five industries reporting a decrease in new export orders during December are: Chemical Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances AND Components; Machinery; Transportation Equipment; and Apparel, Leather, and Allied Products.
The seven industries reporting growth in imports during the month of December (in order) are: Apparel, Leather, and Allied Products; Furniture and Related Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances, and Components; Chemical Products; Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Products; and Computer and Electronic Products. The three industries reporting a decrease in imports during December are: Primary Metals; Transportation Equipment; and Machinery. Seven industries reported no change in imports for the month of December when compared with November.
The full text version of the Manufacturing ISM Report on Business is available on ISM's website.
|
|
