by Calculated Risk on 2/01/2011 10:00:00 AM

PMI at 60.8% in January, up from 58.5% in December. The consensus was for a reading of 57.9%.

From the Institute for Supply Management: January 2011 Manufacturing ISM Report On Business®

The report was issued today by Norbert J. Ore, CPSM, C.P.M., chair of the Institute for Supply Management™ Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "The manufacturing sector grew at a faster rate in January as the PMI registered 60.8 percent, which is its highest level since May 2004 when the index registered 61.4 percent. The continuing strong performance is highlighted as January is also the sixth consecutive month of month-over-month growth in the sector. New orders and production continue to be strong, and employment rose above 60 percent for the first time since May 2004. Global demand is driving commodity prices higher, particularly for energy, metals and chemicals."
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ISM's New Orders Index registered 67.8 percent in January, which is an increase of 5.8 percentage points when compared to the seasonally adjusted 62 percent reported in December. This is the 19th consecutive month of growth in the New Orders Index.
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ISM's Employment Index registered 61.7 percent in January, which is 2.8 percentage points higher than the seasonally adjusted 58.9 percent reported in December. This is the 16th consecutive month of growth in manufacturing employment. An Employment Index above 50.1 percent, over time, is generally consistent with an increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on manufacturing employment.

Click on graph for larger image in new window.

Here is a long term graph of the ISM manufacturing index.

This was a strong report and above expectations. The new orders and employment indexes were especially strong.