Manufacturing ISM Report On Business, US

The data is shown as a diffusion index. These have the properties of leading indicators and are convenient summary measures showing the prevailing direction of change and the scope of change. This means that a PMI reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding and below 50 percent indicates that it is generally declining. A PMI in excess of 42 percent, over a period of time, indicates that the overall economy, or gross domestic product (GDP), is generally expanding; below 42 percent, it is generally declining. The Institute for Supply Management's ISM Manufacturing Report On Business is considered by many economists to be the most reliable near-term economic barometer available. Except for a four-year interruption during World War II, the Report has been published monthly since 1931. The latest report can be found here.