Are We Witnessing a Renaissance in American Manufacturing?


Bloomberg News (5/17, Woellert) reports, "Motor vehicles sales in the first quarter that were the strongest in four years have buoyed manufacturing, helping make up for a slowdown in corporate equipment purchases. While US exports accelerated during the first three months of 2012, weaker economies in Europe and parts of Asia remain a hurdle for American factories."


but that's not all...


IndustryWeek (5/17, Minter) reports, "While industrial production was up, economists warned that there were signs that the manufacturing rebound was starting to weaken." Cliff Waldman, senior economist for the Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation, "noted that primary metals, which supplies many goods-producing sectors, only gained 0.1% in April and contracted by 2.5% in March. The machinery sector had gains in March and April but lost steam last month. And the nondurables sector had a decline in output in April."

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