#660 – Continued Manufacturing Expansion

Continued Manufacturing Expansion

Last week we shared the September ISM Manufacturing Index information (Agurban #659). This week, we have the October information. The Index declined to 58.7, but continues to remain comfortably above 50, signaling growth.

As noted in the release, some of the slowing in pace from September to October can be attributed to post-hurricane ordering that boosted activity in September and returned to more “normal” levels in October.

In addition to the national manufacturing levels, a number of regional agencies conduct their own production surveys.  Here are four regional indexes along with their most recent findings:

1. The MNI Chicago Business Barometer unexpectedly advanced to 66.2, exceeding all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey and marking the strongest reading since March 2011, figures showed on Oct. 31.
2. Down south in the Lone Star State, manufacturing business activity was the firmest in more than 11 years, according to recent figures from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
3. The Kansas City Fed’s measure advanced to the strongest reading since March 2011, while the New York Fed’s Empire State factory index climbed to the highest since September 2014.
4. Even the lesser known Marquette-ISM report on manufacturing in the Milwaukee area improved to an almost three-year high.

In order to get the most accurate picture of manufacturing productions, we try to look at a variety of reports. At this time, the news continues to be encouraging!