Updated: 02-Feb-26 10:20 ET
Highlights
- The ISM Manufacturing Index checked in at 52.6% for January (Briefing.com consensus: 48.3%), up from 47.9% in December.
- The dividing line between expansion and contraction is 50.0%, so the January figure suggests manufacturing activity in January pivoted from contraction to growth.
- The New Orders Index popped to 57.1% from 47.4% in December.
- The Production Index jumped to 55.9% from 50.7% in December.
- The Prices Index edged up to 59.0% from 58.5% in December.
- The Employment Index rose to 48.1% from 44.8% in December.
- The Backlog of Orders Index increased to 51.6% from 45.8% in December.
- The Supplier Deliveries Index improved to 54.4% from 50.8% in December.
- The New Export Orders Index elevated to 50.2% from 46.8% in December.
- The key takeaway from the report is that activity in the manufacturing sector revved up in January, breaking a streak of eleven straight months in a state of contraction, paced by the highest level in the new orders index since February 2022.
| Category | JAN | DEC | NOV | OCT | SEP |
| Total Index | 52.6 | 47.9 | 48.2 | 48.7 | 49.1 |
| Orders | 57.1 | 47.4 | 47.4 | 49.4 | 48.9 |
| Production | 55.9 | 50.7 | 51.4 | 48.2 | 51.0 |
| Employment | 48.1 | 44.8 | 44.0 | 46.0 | 45.3 |
| Deliveries | 54.4 | 50.8 | 49.3 | 54.2 | 52.6 |
| Inventories | 38.7 | 43.3 | 48.9 | 45.8 | 47.7 |
| Export Orders | 50.2 | 46.8 | 46.2 | 44.5 | 43.0 |
| Prices paid (not seas adj) | 59.0 | 58.5 | 58.5 | 58.0 | 61.9 |
