Factory Activity in Upper Midwest Jumped in January
A measure of factory activity in the U.S. upper Midwest jumped in January, marking a third straight month of manufacturing growth in the region, a private survey released Jan. 31 showed.
Marquette University and the Institute for Supply Management-Milwaukee said their index on manufacturing in the Milwaukee region advanced to 59.81 from 51.23 in December.
A reading above 50 indicates regional factory activity is expanding.
Further improvement in regional business outlook stemmed from business owners' hope of decreased government regulation, lower corporate taxes and increased spending on infrastructure under President Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress, according to the survey.
The survey's component on new orders, a proxy on future activity, rose to 65.50 from 59.36 last month, while its production gauge rose to 62.50 from 60.
The employment index moved into growth territory at 58.60 compared with 43.45 in December, while the six-month outlook gauge rose to 74.19 from 71.1.
The survey's prices barometer climbed to 73.33 from 66.67 last month.
The university and ISM-Milwaukee discontinued their survey last May and resumed publication in October.
