COMMODITIES REPORTED UP/DOWN IN PRICE and IN SHORT SUPPLY
Commodities Up in Price
Aluminum(b); Caustic Soda (10); Copper(b) (3); and Steel(b).
Commodities Down in Price
Aluminum(b) (3); Aluminum Based Products (2); Beef; Chemicals; Copper(b) (5); Corn; Corn Products; Diesel Fuel (5); Fuel Surcharges; Gasoline (2); High Density Polyethylene; Natural Gas (5); Nickel (3); Oil; Plastics; Plastic Resin; Polyethylene (2); Polypropylene (3); PVC; Resin Based Products (2); Scrap Metal; Scrap Steel (2); Stainless Steel (3); Stainless Steel Products; Steel(b) (4); and Sulfuric Acid (2).
Commodities in Short Supply
No commodities reported in short supply.
Note: The number of consecutive months the commodity is listed is indicated after each item.
(b) Reported as both up and down in price
DECEMBER 2008 MANUFACTURING INDEX SUMMARIES
PMI
Manufacturing contracted in December as the PMI registered 32.4 percent, 3.8 percentage points lower than the 36.2 percent reported in November. This is the lowest reading since June 1980 when the PMI registered 30.3 percent. A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally contracting.
A PMI in excess of 41.1 percent, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy. Therefore, the PMI indicates contraction in both the overall economy and the manufacturing sector. Ore stated, “The past relationship between the PMI and the overall economy indicates that the average PMI for January through December (45.6 percent) corresponds to a 1.4 percent increase in real gross domestic product (GDP). In addition, if the PMI for December (32.4 percent) is annualized, it corresponds to a 2.7 percent decrease in real GDP annually."
THE LAST 12 MONTHS
| Month | PMI | Month | PMI | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dec 2008 | 32.4 | Jun 2008 | 50.2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nov 2008 | 36.2 | May 2008 | 49.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oct 2008 | 38.9 | Apr 2008 | 48.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sep 2008 | 43.5 | Mar 2008 | 48.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Aug 2008 | 49.9 | Feb 2008 | 48.3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jul 2008 | 50.0 | Jan 2008 | 50.7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Average for 12 months – 45.6
High – 50.7 Low – 32.4 |
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