U.S. Manufacturing Expansion Quickens, Optimism Remains

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By Trey Thoelcke Published
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U.S. manufacturing expanded at a quicker pace in February, according to the closely followed Institute for Supply Management (ISM) index. The index rose to 53.2% from January’s 51.3%, which was the weakest reading since May of 2013. However, it remains below November’s recent peak reading of 57, which is the highest since April of 2011.

Economist expectations for the manufacturing index had ranged generally from 52.0 to 52.5. Any reading over 50 indicates expansion in the sector, while a reader lower than that signals contraction.

The ISM’s new-orders gauge rebounded from a steep drop to 51.2% in January to 54.5% last month. The employment gauge remained flat at 52.3%. But the production subindex shrank to 48.2 from 54.8, its third straight monthly decline. That was the first time since August of 2012 that figure dropped below 50.

ISM chair Bradley J. Holcomb said in the Monday morning release:

As in January, several comments from the panel mention adverse weather conditions as a factor impacting their businesses in February. Other comments reflect optimism in terms of demand and growth in the near term.

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About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.

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