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Protolabs to Support MIT Research on Defense, Medical Innovation Scaling

interview with Bloomberg, Protolabs President and CEO Suresh Krishna highlighted the NAM’s “critical role” in promoting both large and small manufacturers and helping to strengthen American supply chains, saying he was “very proud” of his partnership with NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons. “We need the policies that the NAM is advocating for to help…

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Economic Data and Growth

Global Manufacturing Edges Higher as Employment Growth Hits Three-Year High

In August, growth in global manufacturing strengthened slightly from July, ticking up from 52.1 to 52.3. Output and new orders both improved at faster paces than the prior month. Meanwhile, lead times lengthened, but the rate of increase eased to the lowest level since March. Employment rose at the quickest pace in three years while…

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Economic Data and Growth

Manufacturing PMI Holds Steady as Backlogs and Hiring Build

The S&P Global Manufacturing PMI was 53.9 in August, unchanged from July. Production rose at the weakest rate since February, while new orders continued to grow at a pace similar to July. At the same time, employment rose at the fastest pace of the year as optimism increased to a three-month high. The growth in…

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Economic Data and Growth

Manufacturing Expands for Eighth Consecutive Month

In August, the U.S. manufacturing sector expanded for the eighth consecutive month but at a slightly slower pace, with the ISM Manufacturing® PMI edging down 1.0 percentage point to 54.6%. Certain demand indicators, such as the New Orders, Backlog of Orders and New Export Orders indices, were in expansion, while the Customers’ Inventories Index remained…

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Economic Data and Growth

Factory Orders Regain Momentum, Led by Aircraft Demand

New orders for manufactured goods increased 0.9% in July after inching down 0.2% in June. Meanwhile, new orders for manufactured goods rose 6.5% over the year. When excluding transportation, new orders moved up 0.6% over the month and climbed 6.9% year-over-year in July. Orders for durable goods stepped up 1.1%, after rising 0.6% in June.

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Economic Data and Growth

Texas Factory Activity Strengthens as Orders, Production and Outlook Improve

In August, Texas factory activity expanded at a faster pace after strengthening the prior month. The production index increased from 10.1 to 16.1, remaining above the series average of 9.6. The new orders and capacity utilization indices both climbed above their series averages, rising from 6.4 to 22.0 and from 5.9 to 12.8, respectively. Meanwhile…

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