Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Why the Latest ISM Data isn't Anything to Worry About

The latest manufacturing data from the Institute for Supply Management, or ISM, certainly spooked the market into a sell-off, but was it justified? In other words, Is the weak ISM Purchasing Managers Index, or PMI, data the first indicator of a slowdown in the manufacturing sector, or is it merely a weather related phenomenon? 

Read the full article linked here

Trends in the Industrial Economy

One way to check the pulse of the industrial sector is to analyze the outlook statements from the industrial gas suppliers like Praxair  $PX  and its rival Air Products  $APD . They always give great color on short term trends in global industrial markets, and there a very few companies with more overall exposure to the manufacturing sector.

Read the full article linked here