U.S. Manufacturing Still Growing, Purchasing Group Reports

Jan. 13, 2005
Economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector grew in April for the third straight month -- but at a slightly slower rate than in March. In the latest Manufacturing NAPM (National Assn. of Purchasing Management) Report on Business, NAPM's ...

Economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector grew in April for the third straight month -- but at a slightly slower rate than in March. In the latest Manufacturing NAPM (National Assn. of Purchasing Management) Report on Business, NAPM's Purchasing Managers' Index for April was 52.8%, slightly lower than March's 54.3% but still signifying growth. A PMI above 50% shows manufacturing is "generally expanding," says NAPM; below 50% means "generally contracting." The manufacturing sector showed "a much broader base of growth this month as 16 of 20 manufacturing industries were above the break-even line (an index greater than 50)," says Norbert Ore, chair of the NAPM's Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. The PMI is a composite of five indexes: new orders, which declined 3.4 percentage points to 54.8% in April; production, down 2 percentage points to 57.6%; supplier deliveries, down 3.1 percentage points to 49.4% showing slightly faster deliveries; inventories liquidating slower, up 2 percentage points to 46.6%; and employment, up 1.5 percentage points to 49.5%.

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