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? 

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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.

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