The Institute for Supply Management’s Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) registered 51.5 for September indicating a slight expansion in manufacturing activity for the month and improving over August’s reading of 49.4. New Orders, Production and New Export Orders were among the components expanding, while Employment, Backlog and Imports contracted. Readings have oscillated between 48.0 and 53.2 throughout 2016 indicating a relatively flat manufacturing environment. Only seven (7) of the eighteen (18) industries monitored reported overall growth for the month.
