ISM Manufacturing Index · ISM Manufacturing PMI
ReleasedMonthly · 10:00 AM ET · first business day
FrequencyMonthly
Definition
A diffusion index built from a survey of manufacturing purchasing managers on output, new orders, employment, supplier deliveries and prices. A reading above 50 signals expansion, below 50 contraction.
Why investors care
It is timely, forward-looking and historically a reliable barometer of factory-sector momentum and broader cyclical turns.
What to watch
New orders minus inventories is a leading sub-signal; the prices-paid component is an early inflation tell.