Economic activity in the United States manufacturing sector expanded in February for the seventh consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 10th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the Institute for Supply Management's latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business.
The report was issued March 1 by Norbert J. Ore, CPSM, C.P.M., chair of the Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing Business Survey Committee.
"The manufacturing sector grew for the seventh consecutive month during February," said Ore. "While new orders and production were not as strong as they were in January, they still show significant month-over-month growth. Additionally, the Employment Index is very encouraging, as it is up 2.8 percentage points for the month to 56.1 percent. This is the third consecutive month of growth in the Employment Index. With these levels of activity, manufacturers are seemingly willing to hire where they have orders to support higher employment."
The 11 manufacturing industries reporting growth in February — listed in order — are: Machinery; Paper Products; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Transportation Equipment; Textile Mills; Plastics & Rubber Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Fabricated Metal Products; and Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products. The five industries reporting contraction in February are: Wood Products; Furniture & Related Products; Primary Metals; Printing & Related Support Activities; and Chemical Products.
|
MANUFACTURING AT A GLANCE FEBRUARY 2010 |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Index |
Series Index February |
Series Index January |
Percentage Point Change |
Direction |
Rate of Change |
Trend* (Months) |
| PMI | 56.5 | 58.4 | -1.9 | Growing | Slower | 7 |
| New Orders | 59.5 | 65.9 | -6.4 | Growing | Slower | 8 |
| Production | 58.4 | 66.2 | -7.8 | Growing | Slower | 9 |
| Employment | 56.1 | 53.3 | +2.8 | Growing | Faster | 3 |
| Supplier Deliveries | 61.1 | 60.1 | +1.0 | Slowing | Faster | 9 |
| Inventories | 47.3 | 46.5 | +0.8 | Contracting | Slower | 46 |
| Customers' Inventories | 37.0 | 32.0 | +5.0 | Too Low | Slower | 11 |
| Prices | 67.0 | 70.0 | -3.0 | Increasing | Slower | 8 |
| Backlog of Orders | 61.0 | 56.0 | +5.0 | Growing | Faster | 2 |
| Exports | 56.5 | 58.5 | -2.0 | Growing | Slower | 8 |
| Imports | 56.0 | 56.5 | -0.5 | Growing | Slower | 6 |
| OVERALL ECONOMY | Growing | Slower | 10 | |||
| Manufacturing Sector | Growing | Slower | 7 | |||
*Number of months moving in current direction.
Aluminum (8); Cocoa Powder; Natural Gas (2); Paper; Plastics (2); Plastic Resins (2); Polyethylene; Polypropylene (3); Stainless Steel Products (2); Steel (8); and Steel Products (2).
Copper is the only commodity reported down in price.
No commodities are reported in short supply.
Note: The number of consecutive months the commodity is listed is indicated after each item.
Manufacturing continued to grow in February, but the rate of growth decelerated as the PMI registered 56.5 percent, a decrease of 1.9 percentage points when compared to January's seasonally adjusted reading of 58.4 percent. A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally contracting.
A PMI in excess of 42 percent, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy. Therefore, the PMI indicates growth for the 10th consecutive month in the overall economy, as well as expansion in the manufacturing sector for the seventh consecutive month. Ore stated, "The past relationship between the PMI and the overall economy indicates that the average PMI for January and February (57.5 percent) corresponds to a 5.2 percent increase in real gross domestic product (GDP). In addition, if the PMI for February is annualized, it corresponds to a 4.9 percent increase in real GDP annually."
| Month | PMI | Month | PMI | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 56.5 | Aug 2009 | 52.8 | |
| Jan 2010 | 58.4 | Jul 2009 | 49.1 | |
| Dec 2009 | 54.9 | Jun 2009 | 45.3 | |
| Nov 2009 | 53.7 | May 2009 | 43.2 | |
| Oct 2009 | 55.2 | Apr 2009 | 40.4 | |
| Sep 2009 | 52.4 | Mar 2009 | 36.4 | |
|
Average for 12 months – 49.9 High – 58.4 Low – 36.4 |
||||
ISM's New Orders Index registered 59.5 percent in February, 6.4 percentage points lower than the seasonally adjusted 65.9 percent registered in January. This is the eighth consecutive month of growth in the New Orders Index. A New Orders Index above 50.2 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Census Bureau's series on manufacturing orders (in constant 2000 dollars).
The 10 industries reporting growth in new orders in February — listed in order — are: Plastics & Rubber Products; Machinery; Paper Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Printing & Related Support Activities; Transportation Equipment; Fabricated Metal Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; and Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products. The three industries reporting decreases in new orders in February are: Wood Products; Furniture & Related Products; and Chemical Products.
|
New Orders |
% Better |
% Same |
% Worse |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 36 | 49 | 15 | +21 | 59.5 |
| Jan 2010 | 41 | 43 | 16 | +25 | 65.9 |
| Dec 2009 | 35 | 46 | 19 | +16 | 64.8 |
| Nov 2009 | 36 | 42 | 22 | +14 | 61.5 |
ISM's Production Index registered 58.4 percent in February, which is a decrease of 7.8 percentage points from the January reading of 66.2 percent (seasonally adjusted). An index above 51 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Federal Reserve Board's Industrial Production figures. This is the ninth consecutive month the Production Index has registered above 50 percent.
The nine industries reporting growth in production during the month of February — listed in order — are: Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Paper Products; Transportation Equipment; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Fabricated Metal Products; and Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components. The four industries reporting a decrease in production are: Wood Products; Furniture & Related Products; Chemical Products; and Printing & Related Support Activities.
|
Production |
% Better |
% Same |
% Worse |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 32 | 54 | 14 | +18 | 58.4 |
| Jan 2010 | 38 | 51 | 11 | +27 | 66.2 |
| Dec 2009 | 26 | 58 | 16 | +10 | 59.7 |
| Nov 2009 | 33 | 50 | 17 | +16 | 60.2 |
ISM's Employment Index registered 56.1 percent in February, which is 2.8 percentage points higher than the seasonally adjusted 53.3 percent reported in January. This is the third month of growth in manufacturing employment, and the highest reading since January 2005 (58.7 percent). An Employment Index above 49.8 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on manufacturing employment.
Ten of the 18 manufacturing industries reported growth in employment in February in the following order: Textile Mills; Petroleum & Coal Products; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Paper Products; Machinery; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Transportation Equipment; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Fabricated Metal Products; and Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products. The four industries that reported decreases in employment during February are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Wood Products; Furniture & Related Products; and Plastics & Rubber Products.
|
Employment |
% Higher |
% Same |
% Lower |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 22 | 68 | 10 | +12 | 56.1 |
| Jan 2010 | 15 | 73 | 12 | +3 | 53.3 |
| Dec 2009 | 17 | 65 | 18 | -1 | 50.2 |
| Nov 2009 | 17 | 65 | 18 | -1 | 49.6 |
The delivery performance of suppliers to manufacturing organizations was slower in February as the Supplier Deliveries Index registered 61.1 percent, which is 1 percentage point higher than the 60.1 percent registered in January (seasonally adjusted). This is the ninth consecutive month the Supplier Deliveries Index has been above 50 percent. A reading above 50 percent indicates slower deliveries.
The nine industries reporting slower supplier deliveries in February — listed in order — are: Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Transportation Equipment; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Plastics & Rubber Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Paper Products; Machinery; and Computer & Electronic Products. The three industries reporting faster deliveries in February are: Petroleum & Coal Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; and Chemical Products.
|
Supplier Deliveries |
% Slower |
% Same |
% Faster |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 23 | 72 | 5 | +18 | 61.1 |
| Jan 2010 | 18 | 79 | 3 | +15 | 60.1 |
| Dec 2009 | 16 | 78 | 6 | +10 | 56.8 |
| Nov 2009 | 15 | 80 | 5 | +10 | 55.7 |
Manufacturers' inventories contracted at a slower rate in February as the Inventories Index registered 47.3 percent. The index is 0.8 percentage point higher than the seasonally adjusted January reading of 46.5 percent. An Inventories Index greater than 42.6 percent, over time, is generally consistent with expansion in the Bureau of Economic Analysis' (BEA) figures on overall manufacturing inventories (in chained 2000 dollars).
The five industries reporting higher inventories in February are: Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; and Paper Products. The eight industries that reported decreases in inventories in February — listed in order — are: Primary Metals; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Printing & Related Support Activities; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Fabricated Metal Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Chemical Products; and Plastics & Rubber Products.
|
Inventories |
% Higher |
% Same |
% Lower |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 17 | 64 | 19 | -2 | 47.3 |
| Jan 2010 | 16 | 60 | 24 | -8 | 46.5 |
| Dec 2009 | 13 | 57 | 30 | -17 | 43.0 |
| Nov 2009 | 8 | 63 | 29 | -21 | 41.4 |
The ISM Customers' Inventories Index registered 37 percent in February, 5 percentage points higher than in January when the index registered 32 percent, and the 11th consecutive month the Customers' Inventories Index has been below 50 percent. The index indicates that respondents believe their customers' inventories are too low at this time.
The only industry reporting higher customers' inventories during February is Furniture & Related Products. The 12 industries that reported lower customers' inventories during February — listed in order — are: Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Wood Products; Transportation Equipment; Machinery; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Paper Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Chemical Products; and Printing & Related Support Activities.
|
Customers' Inventories |
% Reporting |
%Too High |
%About Right |
%Too Low |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 71 | 7 | 60 | 33 | -26 | 37.0 |
| Jan 2010 | 73 | 4 | 56 | 40 | -36 | 32.0 |
| Dec 2009 | 73 | 7 | 56 | 37 | -30 | 35.0 |
| Nov 2009 | 75 | 7 | 60 | 33 | -26 | 37.0 |
The ISM Prices Index registered 67 percent in February, 3 percentage points lower than the 70 percent reported in January. This is the eighth consecutive month that the Prices Index has registered above 50 percent. While 39 percent of respondents reported paying higher prices and 5 percent reported paying lower prices, 56 percent of supply executives reported paying the same prices as in January. A Prices Index above 49.3 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Index of Manufacturers Prices.
The 14 industries reporting paying increased prices during the month of February — listed in order — are: Plastics & Rubber Products; Fabricated Metal Products; Paper Products; Wood Products; Transportation Equipment; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Furniture & Related Products; Primary Metals; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; and Chemical Products. Nonmetallic Mineral Products is the only industry reporting paying lower prices during February.
|
Prices |
% Higher |
% Same |
% Lower |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 39 | 56 | 5 | +34 | 67.0 |
| Jan 2010 | 44 | 52 | 4 | +40 | 70.0 |
| Dec 2009 | 32 | 59 | 9 | +23 | 61.5 |
| Nov 2009 | 20 | 70 | 10 | +10 | 55.0 |
ISM's Backlog of Orders Index registered 61 percent in February, 5 percentage points higher than the 56 percent reported in January. Of the 86 percent of respondents who reported their backlog of orders, 33 percent reported greater backlogs, 11 percent reported smaller backlogs, and 56 percent reported no change from January.
The 13 industries reporting increased order backlogs in February — listed in order — are: Paper Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Machinery; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Primary Metals; Fabricated Metal Products; Transportation Equipment; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; and Chemical Products. The three industries that reported decreases in order backlogs during February are: Petroleum & Coal Products; Furniture & Related Products; and Wood Products.
|
Backlog of Orders |
% Reporting |
% Greater |
% Same |
% Less |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 86 | 33 | 56 | 11 | +22 | 61.0 |
| Jan 2010 | 84 | 26 | 60 | 14 | +12 | 56.0 |
| Dec 2009 | 86 | 24 | 52 | 24 | 0 | 50.0 |
| Nov 2009 | 85 | 23 | 58 | 19 | +4 | 52.0 |
ISM's New Export Orders Index registered 56.5 percent in February, 2 percentage points lower than the 58.5 percent reported in January. This is the eighth consecutive month of growth in the New Export Orders Index, following nine consecutive months of contraction.
The nine industries reporting growth in new export orders in February — listed in order — are: Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Chemical Products; and Transportation Equipment. Primary Metals and Fabricated Metal Products are the only two industries reporting decreases in new export orders during February.
|
New Export Orders |
% Reporting |
% Higher |
% Same |
% Lower |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 79 | 17 | 79 | 4 | +13 | 56.5 |
| Jan 2010 | 78 | 19 | 79 | 2 | +17 | 58.5 |
| Dec 2009 | 78 | 19 | 71 | 10 | +9 | 54.5 |
| Nov 2009 | 79 | 22 | 68 | 10 | +12 | 56.0 |
Imports of materials by manufacturers expanded in February as the Imports Index registered 56 percent, 0.5 percentage point lower than the 56.5 percent reported in January. This is the sixth consecutive month of growth in imports.
The 10 industries reporting growth in imports during the month of February — listed in order — are: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Furniture & Related Products; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Transportation Equipment; and Fabricated Metal Products. Chemical Products is the only industry reporting a decrease in imports during February.
|
Imports |
% Reporting |
% Higher |
% Same |
% Lower |
Net |
Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2010 | 81 | 18 | 76 | 6 | +12 | 56.0 |
| Jan 2010 | 81 | 20 | 73 | 7 | +13 | 56.5 |
| Dec 2009 | 83 | 20 | 70 | 10 | +10 | 55.0 |
| Nov 2009 | 81 | 12 | 79 | 9 | +3 | 51.5 |
* The Backlog of Orders, Prices, Customers' Inventories, Imports and New Export Orders Indexes do not meet the accepted criteria for seasonal adjustments.
Average commitment lead time for Capital Expenditures is unchanged at 118 days. Average lead time for Production Materials decreased three days to 50 days. Average lead time for Maintenance, Repair and Operating (MRO) Supplies increased three days to 24 days.
| Percent Reporting | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Capital Expenditures |
Hand- to- Mouth |
30 Days |
60 Days |
90 Days |
6 Months |
1 Year+ |
Average Days |
| Feb 2010 | 27 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 26 | 13 | 118 |
| Jan 2010 | 28 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 28 | 13 | 118 |
| Dec 2009 | 31 | 7 | 8 | 21 | 20 | 13 | 110 |
| Nov 2009 | 35 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 27 | 9 | 102 |
|
Production Materials |
Hand- to- Mouth |
30 Days |
60 Days |
90 Days |
6 Months |
1 Year+ |
Average Days |
| Feb 2010 | 22 | 42 | 21 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 50 |
| Jan 2010 | 24 | 36 | 23 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 53 |
| Dec 2009 | 26 | 40 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 51 |
| Nov 2009 | 26 | 36 | 24 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 48 |
|
MRO Supplies |
Hand- to- Mouth |
30 Days |
60 Days |
90 Days |
6 Months |
1 Year+ |
Average Days |
| Feb 2010 | 48 | 36 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Jan 2010 | 54 | 34 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Dec 2009 | 54 | 33 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Nov 2009 | 56 | 29 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 22 |
The data presented herein is obtained from a survey of manufacturing supply managers based on information they have collected within their respective organizations. ISM makes no representation, other than that stated within this release, regarding the individual company data collection procedures. Use of the data is in the public domain and should be compared to all other economic data sources when used in decision-making.
The Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is based on data compiled from purchasing and supply executives nationwide. Membership of the Manufacturing Business Survey Committee is diversified by NAICS, based on each industry's contribution to gross domestic product (GDP). Manufacturing Business Survey Committee responses are divided into the following NAICS code categories: Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Textile Mills; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Wood Products; Paper Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; Petroleum & Coal Products; Chemical Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Primary Metals; Fabricated Metal Products; Machinery; Computer & Electronic Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Transportation Equipment; Furniture & Related Products; and Miscellaneous Manufacturing (products such as medical equipment and supplies, jewelry, sporting goods, toys and office supplies).
Survey responses reflect the change, if any, in the current month compared to the previous month. For each of the indicators measured (New Orders, Backlog of Orders, New Export Orders, Imports, Production, Supplier Deliveries, Inventories, Customers' Inventories, Employment and Prices), this report shows the percentage reporting each response, the net difference between the number of responses in the positive economic direction (higher, better and slower for Supplier Deliveries) and the negative economic direction (lower, worse and faster for Supplier Deliveries), and the diffusion index. Responses are raw data and are never changed. The diffusion index includes the percent of positive responses plus one-half of those responding the same (considered positive).
The resulting single index number for those meeting the criteria for seasonal adjustments (PMI, New Orders, Production, Employment, Supplier Deliveries and Inventories) is then seasonally adjusted to allow for the effects of repetitive intra-year variations resulting primarily from normal differences in weather conditions, various institutional arrangements, and differences attributable to non-moveable holidays. All seasonal adjustment factors are supplied by the U.S. Department of Commerce and are subject annually to relatively minor changes when conditions warrant them. The PMI is a composite index based on the seasonally adjusted diffusion indexes for five of the indicators with equal weights: New Orders, Production, Employment, Supplier Deliveries and Inventories.
Diffusion indexes have the properties of leading indicators and are convenient summary measures showing the prevailing direction of change and the scope of change. A PMI reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally declining. A PMI in excess of 42 percent, over a period of time, indicates that the overall economy, or gross domestic product (GDP), is generally expanding; below 42 percent, it is generally declining. The distance from 50 percent or 42 percent is indicative of the strength of the expansion or decline. With some of the indicators within this report, ISM has indicated the departure point between expansion and decline of comparable government series, as determined by regression analysis.
Responses to Buying Policy reflect the percent reporting the current month's lead time, the approximate weighted number of days ahead for which commitments are made for Production Materials; Capital Expenditures; and Maintenance, Repair and Operating (MRO) Supplies, expressed as hand-to-mouth (five days), 30 days, 60 days, 90 days, six months (180 days), a year or more (360 days), and the weighted average number of days. These responses are raw data, never revised, and not seasonally adjusted since there is no significant seasonal pattern.
The Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is published monthly by the Institute for Supply Management. ISM, established in 1915, is the largest supply management organization in the world as well as one of the most respected. Its mission is to lead the supply management profession through its standards of excellence, research, promotional activities and education. This report has been issued by the association since 1931, except for a four-year interruption during World War II.
The next Manufacturing ISM Report On Business, featuring the March 2010 data, will be released at 10 a.m. (ET) on Thursday, April 1, 2010.