More good news

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January’s ISM manufacturing index is 50.9, a surprise sector expansion

• The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said on Monday its index of national factory activity increased to a reading of 50.9 last month, the highest level since July, from an upwardly revised 47.8 in December.
  
  • The improvement in the ISM data likely reflects ebbing trade tensions between the United States and China. Washington and Beijing signed a Phase 1 trade deal last month.
  • The improvement in ISMs closely watched national survey follows a series of mixed readings on the manufacturing sector at the regional level.

 

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Consumer sentiment ticks up as unemployment remains around 50-year lows

• The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index came in at 99.8 for January.
• Economists polled by Dow Jones expected consumer sentiment to come in at 99.1.
• “The resilience of consumers is remarkable and due to record low unemployment, record gains in income and wealth, as well as near record lows in inflation and interest rates,” said Richard Curtin, Surveys of Consumers chief economist, in a statement.