February 2019 ISM service sector PMI
- Prior was 56.7
- New orders 65.2 vs 57.7 prior -- highest since 2005
- Employment 55.2 vs 57.8
- Prices paid 54.4 vs 59.4 prior
The jump in new orders is a great sign. This should help to quell some of the fears about the US economy.
New orders:
Commentary in the report:
- "We are anxiously awaiting decisions in the next couple of weeks on the fate of the proposed tariffs on China. High Chinese commitments to agriculture output will put cost pressure on food and restaurant margins." (Accommodation & Food Services)
- "The beginning of the year is generally our slowest time of year in the health-care industry. [Activity] will gradually pick up until April, then be steady until the fourth quarter, when there will be a large increase." (Health Care & Social Assistance)
- "Still strong in all areas, due mostly to commercial construction activity." (Construction)
- "The local economy is doing well. Business lending remains competitive. The rise in interest rates have helped boost our net interest margin." (Finance & Insurance)
- "Business continues to stay steady, with little drop off. However, we are more concerned about tariffs in the short term, since there seems to be no agreement. However, we do believe it will be a short-lived issue. In the long term, tariffs will force our suppliers to source elsewhere, which will levy more competition from manufacturers in other low- or non-tariffed countries and even in the U.S. Ultimately, the tariffs will force an improvement to the overall supply chain and better mitigate supply risk in our industry." (Management of Companies & Support Services)
- "Increased activity level over the end of 2018." (Mining)
- "Business continues [to] improve, and we expect it to continue through 2019. Domestic trucking availability is improving." (Other Services)
- "Confidence is returning in the marketplace, but tariff surcharges are still in place." (Retail Trade)
- "Tariffs continue to have an impact on our business. The contractor labor shortage continues to be the biggest supply challenge for our company and others in our region and industry." (Utilities)
- "Seeing increases in business activity. Projecting strong sales for the month, stable prices and generally good fill rates from suppliers. Some spot outages, mostly due to capacity and planning limitations or shortfalls." (Wholesale Trade)
