Members:

Here is the Monday Manufacturing Economy Report plus the December Global Economy Report from NAM Chief Economist Chad Moutray for 12/18/2017. The Council of Industry, as an affiliate organization of the National Association of Manufacturers is happy to share this report with our members. 

Here are some highlights from the Monday Report:
"After a wild week in global financial markets, stock prices struggled at times on Friday to get a firm footing—trying to find a bottom from which it can build some upward momentum. Analysts suggest that we might be in for more volatility than we have become accustomed to, and we have certainly seen that in recent trading days. As of Friday’s close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 9.1 percent from the all-time high set on January 26. However, to be fair, it remains 32.0 percent higher than it was on Election Day in 2016.
In the case of the current market, it could also be said that the decline stems more from optimism, and not pessimism, about the economic outlook. Strong economic growth, including job gains and wage pressures, combined to send a signal to financial markets that the Federal Reserve might be more hawkish on rates than some might have predicted, and that was enough to send equity markets sharply lower.
Despite the stock market fluctuations of the past week, the fundamentals of the worldwide economy remain quite healthy, and more importantly, the outlook continues to be strong. U.S.-manufactured goods exports rebounded strongly in 2017—a nice turnaround after global economic weaknesses in both 2015 and 2016. The U.S. dollar has fallen 2.6 percent so far in 2018 against major currencies, according to the Federal Reserve, or 11.0 percent since the end of 2016, helping to improve international demand for U.S.-manufactured goods. "

Here are some highlights from the  Global Report:
" Despite the stock market fluctuations of the past week, the fundamentals of the worldwide economy remain quite healthy, and more importantly, the outlook continues to be strong. The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI pulled back slightly from December’s pace, which was the fastest since February 2011, but the good news is that exports strengthened in the latest figures to the best reading in nearly seven years—a sign that trade volumes have picked up as the international economy has continued to improve. Output and employment remained at the best rates since early 2011, with new orders slipping a little from a seven-year high but continuing to expand at a decent clip. Looking ahead six months, manufacturing leaders remained very upbeat in their global outlook, with that measure at an 11-month high.

In January, all of the top-15 markets for U.S.-manufactured goods expanded. (There is no manufacturing PMI for comparison purposes for Belgium, which is our 10th-largest trading partner.) South Korea , which contracted ever so slightly in December, returned to positive growth again in January. As has been the case for several months, Europe once again dominated the list of top export markets with strong manufacturing growth, but other regions were also well represented. Those countries with the highest PMI readings in the sector in January included the Netherlands (a new all-time high), Germany , France , Taiwan , the United Arab Emirates , Canada , the United Kingdom and Japan . Read the Full Global Report Here.

Harold King
Executive Vice President
The Council of Industry
6 Albany Post Road
Newburgh, NY 12550
845-565-1355
hking@councilofindustry.org