Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in September, and the overall economy grew for the 100th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business. The report was issued on October 2nd by Timothy R. Fiore, Chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. The report noted:
- Manufacturing expanded in September as the PMI registered 60.8 percent, an increase of 2 percentage points from the August reading of 58.8 percent. This indicates growth in manufacturing for the 13th consecutive month and is the highest reading since May 2004, when the index registered 61.4 percent. A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally contracting.
- The New Orders Index registered 64.6 percent in September, which is an increase of 4.3 percentage points when compared to the 60.3 percent reported for August, indicating growth in new orders for the 13th consecutive month. "Order input continues at a strong pace, averaging 61.6 percent since December 2016 [and] setting the pace for production activity," stated Fiore.
- The Production Index registered 62.2 percent in September, which is an increase of 1.2 percentage points when compared to the 61.0 percent reported for August, indicating growth in production for the 13th consecutive month.
- Employment Index registered 60.3 percent in September, an increase of 0.4 percentage point when compared to the August reading of 59.9 percent. This indicates growth in employment in September for the 12th consecutive month. Employment levels have been expanding since October 2016, and this month’s Index reading is the highest since June 2011, when it registered 61.3 percent.
The Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is based on data compiled from purchasing and supply executives nationwide.
Source and more information: Institute for Supply Management.
Author
Michael Anderson, former senior editor at Cutting Tool Engineering magazine, holds a master's degree in written communication from Eastern Michigan University. He has been professionally writing about manufacturing technology since 1998, including more than 10 years at the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.
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