Activity in U.S. factories rose in February on solid demand and improving supply-chain constraints.
- The IHS Markit final U.S. manufacturing PMI jumped to 57.3 in February from 55.5 in January, slightly falling from its preliminary estimate of 57.5.
- The reading signals that the U.S. manufacturing sector continued to grow. Any measure above 50 indicates growth, but at a faster rate compared with the prior month.
- Chris Williamson, a chief business economist at IHS Markit, stated that the U.S. manufacturing sector recovered in February after the Omicron variant brought production to a halt in January.
- U.S. manufacturers reported an upturn in production during the month and a sharp increase in new orders. Stronger new orders sales growth triggered firms to increase staffing and boost stocks of purchases.
- Production remains hampered by raw material supply chain constraints and labor shortages but signaled that these problems will continue to ease.
February’s survey did not account for any effect from the crisis in Ukraine as the data was gathered before the escalation of the Russian invasion.
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Source: IHS Markit
