US Manufacturing Activity Grew In January.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (2/2, Barrett) reports, “Boosted by an increase in new orders, the production at US factories grew in January at the fastest pace in seven months.”

Bloomberg News (2/2) reports, “The Institute for Supply Management’s index climbed to 54.1, from 53.1 in December, the Tempe, Arizona-based group’s report showed” Wednesday. “The ISM’s new orders measure climbed to 57.6, the highest since April, from 54.8, and the gauge of export orders rose.” Bloomberg News notes, “Manufacturing accounts for about 12 percent of the economy and was at the forefront of the recovery that began in June 2009.”

The AP (2/2, Rugaber) reports, “Consumers are buying more cars and trucks, while businesses ordered more machinery and other equipment. That has driven manufacturing, which expanded for the 30th straight month.”

The Hill (2/1, Needham) “On The Money” blog reported, “Export orders also rose, a sign that US manufacturers haven’t yet been affected by Europe’s slowing economy. Meanwhile, a separate report from the Commerce Department showed that construction spending increased 1.5 percent in December, the fifth straight monthly gain. That pushed spending to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $816.4 billion, the highest level in 20 months.”

Also covering the story are Reuters (2/2, Schnurr), MarketWatch (2/2, Bartash), AFP (2/2), IndustryWeek (2/2) and other media sources.

Manufacturing Growth In Canada Slows Sharply In January. Canada’s Financial Post (2/2) reports, “Canadian manufacturing growth slowed markedly in January, data contained in the Canadian Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index showed” yesterday. “‘The headline RBC PMI – a composite indicator designed to provide a single-figure snapshot of the health of the manufacturing sector – registered 50.6 in January, down sharply from 54.0 in December, and indicated the weakest improvement in Canadian manufacturing business conditions since data collection began in October 2010,’ said the report, compiled in association with financial services company Markit.” The Post reports, “While the survey found that manufacturing conditions did improve in January, rates of expansion in output and new order growth were the weakest since data collection began.”

Reuters (2/2, Cook), Dow Jones Newswires (2/2, Menon, Subscription Publication) and other media sources also cover the story.

From SME Daily Executive Briefing 2/2/2012