Assistant VP, Digital Advocacy Strategy
The National Association of Manufacturers
202-555-1212
There’s a new source of critical mineral demand: drone warfare (Center for Strategic & International Studies. Canada plays a role: With its rich deposits of critical minerals, Canada is emerging as an alternative to China. Our view: “Securing alternative critical mineral sources and strengthening and expanding America’s critical minerals industry are both crucial to creating…
As anticipated, the Federal Open Market Committee raised its interest rate target range by 25 basis points to 3.75%–4.00% at its September meeting, the first hike since July 2023. The interest rate decision was unanimous. In a change to its previous statement, the FOMC noted that the action would support a timelier return to the…
Industrial production stayed the same in August, while manufacturing output decreased 0.3% after ticking up 0.2% in July. At 98.2% of its 2017 average, manufacturing production increased 0.9% from August 2025. Capacity utilization for manufacturing was 75.7%, down 0.3 percentage points from July but up 1.0% over the past year. Capacity utilization for manufacturing remained…
U.S. import prices increased 0.7% in August, after declining 0.3% in July, with higher prices for nonfuel imports more than offsetting lower prices for fuel imports. Over the year, import prices advanced 7.0%, the largest annual increase since August 2022. Meanwhile, U.S. export prices rose 0.6% in August, driven by higher prices for both agricultural…
Manufacturing activity in New York state expanded at a slower pace in September, with the headline business conditions index declining 13.0 points to 7.6. The new orders index fell 15.3 points to 2.0, while the shipments index turned negative, decreasing 14.9 points to -3.2. The unfilled orders index dropped 9.6 points to 5.9, while inventories…
In September, Philadelphia’s regional manufacturing activity expanded at a slower pace, with the index for general business activity falling from 47.4 to 37.8. This month, 45.3% of firms reported increases in activity, while 7.5% cited decreases. New order growth also slowed, moving down from 30.1 to 29.2, while the shipments index stayed the same at…
