Georgia manufacturers report small gains

The state’s beleaguered manufacturing sector reported a modest improvement in business in March, according to the monthly survey by Kennesaw State University’s Econometric Center.

The report, released Wednesday, showed new orders rising for the fourth consecutive month, while production and hiring also increased.

Although data shows manufacturing still in decline, the KSU snapshot now looks decidedly better than the “historic lows” of November and December, said Don Sabbarese, director of the center.

That progress “may or may not be sustainable given the overall weakness for the broader economy,” he said.

While one month is not a trend, the Georgia report parallels a national survey, released earlier this week, that also showed a higher level of orders and production. The numbers are still recessionary — but they are better than they were, Sabbarese said. “The current readings are still consistent with a contracting manufacturing sector, but the contraction is definitely slower.”

Manufacturing, which has been shedding jobs for a decade, still accounts for roughly one-tenth of the jobs in Georgia. The sector tends to provide above-average pay and is considered important in adding other jobs. Georgia unemployment in February was 9.3 percent, but most counties reported double-digit joblessness.

The overall state rate will likely hit 10 percent too in data for either March or April, said Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond.

March was the second straight month in which Georgia’s report was brighter than the national data.