Blog
Manufacturing Stabilizes In U.S. and China
April 3, 2019
Manufacturing showed signs of life in the world’s two largest economies last month. Both the U.S. and China stopped the months-long decline in manufacturing, allaying fears of an impending slowdown.
The U.S. Institute for Supply Management’s index of manufacturing activity rose to 55.3 in March, up from 54.2 in February. Of particular note was the strength of new orders, which suggests strong U.S. factory output in the coming months. The index is based on how manufacturing supply managers see activity at their companies, and numbers above 50 indicate that activity is expanding.
China’s purchasing manager’s index bounced back too, climbing to 50.5, up from the previous month’s 49.2. This marks a six-month high for the index.
