Manufacturing PMI^® at 52.4%

The Manufacturing PMI^® registered 52.4 percent in February. The overall economy continued in expansion for the 16th month. (A Manufacturing PMI® above 47.5 percent, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy.) 

The New Orders Index expanded for the second straight month after four straight readings in contraction, registering 55.8 percent, down 1.3 percentage points compared to January’s figure of 57.1 percent. The February reading of the Production Index (53.5 percent) is 2.4 percentage points lower than January’s reading of 55.9 percent. The Prices Index remained in expansion (or “increasing” territory), registering 70.5 percent, an 11.5-percentage point jump from January’s reading of 59 percent and its highest reading since June 2022 (78.5 percent). The Backlog of Orders Index registered 56.6 percent, up 5 percentage points compared to the 51.6 percent recorded in January and its highest reading since May 2022 (58.7 percent). The Employment Index registered 48.8 percent, up 0.7 percentage point from January’s figure of 48.1 percent. 

The 12 manufacturing industries reporting growth in February — listed in order — are: Printing & Related Support Activities; Textile Mills; Primary Metals; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Chemical Products; Machinery; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Fabricated Metal Products; Transportation Equipment; Plastics & Rubber Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing^‡; and Computer & Electronic Products.

The U.S. manufacturing sector expanded in February for the second time since January 2025, registering 52.4 percent, a 0.2-percentage point decrease compared to January’s reading of 52.6 percent. Of the five subindexes that directly factor into the Manufacturing PMI^®, three (New Orders, Production and Supplier Deliveries) are in expansion territory, the same as in January. The Employment and Inventories indexes stayed in contraction, though both improved compared to January. 

Commodities Reported

Commodities Up in Price: Aluminum (27); Brass (3); Copper (8); Copper Based Products (3); Critical Minerals (4); Electronic Components (2); Gold; Labor (2); Natural Gas; Polypropylene; Precious Metals (2); Resins; Silver; Steel (4); Steel — Hot Rolled (2); Steel — Stainless; Steel Products (3); and Tungsten Products.

Commodities Down in Price: Freight.

Commodities in Short Supply: Electrical Components (8); Electronic Components (12); Memory (2); and Rare Earth Components (4).

Note: To view the full report, visit the ISM^® PMI^® Reports website at ismrob.org. The number of consecutive months the commodity is listed is indicated after each item.

* — Reported as both up and down in price.