The U.S. manufacturing sector contracted in September for the seventh month in a row, following a two-month expansion preceded by 26 straight months of contraction. The ISM Manufacturing PMI® registered 49.1%, 0.4 percentage points (pp) higher compared to the 48.7% recorded in August.
The September Manufacturing PMI® indicates the overall economy grew for the 65th straight month after last contracting in April 2020. (A manufacturing PMI® above 50%, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy.)
The Employment Index registered 45.3% in September, 1.5 pp lower than August’s reading of 43.8%. Prices Index remained in expansion (or “increasing”) territory, registering 61.9% in September, down 1.8 pp compared to the August’s reading of 63.7%. New Orders Index contracted in September after one month in expansion, registering 48.9%, a decrease of 2.5 pp compared to August’s figure of 51.4%. This reading is below the 12-month moving average (49%) for the New Orders Index.
New Export Orders Index contracted in September, registering 43%, down 4.6 pp from August’s reading of 47.6%. “Export orders contracted for the seventh consecutive month after growing in January and February. Of the 18 manufacturing industries, none reported growth in new export orders in September.
Imports Index remained in contraction for the sixth month in September after expanding for three straight months. The September figure of 44.7% is a decrease of 1.3 pp compared to the reading of 46 % reported in August. No industry reported an increase in import volumes in September.
The Inventories Index registered 47.7% in September, down 1.7 pp compared to the reading of 49.4% in August. Of 18 manufacturing industries, the seven reported higher inventories in September.
Read the ISM release.
