U.S. manufacturing grew in April at the strongest rate in 10 months, easing concerns the economy had lost momentum at the start of the second quarter, according to a ndew Reuters news report. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM), New York, N.Y., USA, reported that its index of national factory activity rose to 54.8 from 53.4 in March. The figure bested expectations for a decline to 53.0 and came in above the top end of forecasts in a Reuters poll. A reading below 50 indicates contraction in the manufacturing sector, while a number above 50 means expansion.
"The view on the economy has swung from optimism to pessimism of late and this could bring us back to the middle," Nick Bennenbroek, head of FX Strategy for North America at Wells Fargo, was quoted in the Reuters report. "ISM suggests there's no real reason to get too concerned about the path of the U.S. economy at this point," he added.
ISM's gauge of employment also rose to its highest since June, to 57.3 from 56.1. The forward-looking new orders component racked up its best reading in a year at 58.2, up from 54.5.
The strong labor figure came ahead of the larger government nonfarm payrolls report May 4 that showed the economy added 170,000 jobs last month, including 22,000 manufacturing positions. The ISM report was in contrast to some regional manufacturing reports, including Chicago this past Monday, that had showed the rate of growth slowed last month. It also bucked the trend of recent data that suggested the economy lost some steam as the second quarter got under way, highlighting the bumpy nature of the recovery, Reuters noted.
The economy grew at a 2.2% rate in the first quarter, a step back from the 3% pace logged in the final months of 2011.
Construction spending edged up 0.1% to an annual rate of $808.07 billion, according to the Commerce Department, after a revised 1.4% drop in February. Economists polled by Reuters had expected construction spending to rise 0.5%.
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