Manufacturing in Georgia and the rest of the nation declined last month as the economic recovery continues to experience fits and starts.
Kennesaw State University’s Econometric Center reported that the state’s monthly Purchasing Managers Index dropped 3.9 points for the second consecutive month to 50, while the national PMI was at 51.3, down nearly 6 points.
A reading above 50 indicates expansion overall in key industries, such as textiles, transportation equipment, food and beverages, and computer, electrical equipment and appliance manufacturing. The results come from a survey of purchasing managers, who are responsible for acquiring the materials companies use to make products.
Manufactures, however, continue to be optimistic about the direction of the economy and the outlook for growth, according to Don Sabbarese, director of the Econometric Center.
“Ironically, 57 percent of Georgia’s PMI respondents expect their production for the next three to six months to increase,” Sabbarese said in releasing the state report.
Results for new orders, production, employment, supplier deliveries, finished inventory and commodity prices were all lower last month in Georgia,
Manufacturing last month was also weak across the nation, with concern about the national PMI report and outlook for slower global growth, including in China, prompting a sharp sell-off Monday on Wall Street.
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