There was an impact on delivery times that were substantially longer. This once again thwarted the ability of companies to produce goods.
The US Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) fell to its lowest level since November 2020.
This is because it registered 57.7 points in December from 58.3 in November. The preliminary estimate for December was 57.8 points, IHS Markit reported Monday.
“The improvement in the health of the US manufacturing sector was the slowest in 2021, amid weak growth in production and new orders,” the London-based company said.
He added: “However, ongoing efforts to increase health security and the serious deterioration in supplier performance, which are typically signs of improving conditions, continued to raise the overall PMI.”
IHS Market revealed that US manufacturers saw new production constraints due to severe material shortages and delays in the delivery of supplies.
Therefore, the impact on delivery times was substantially longer. This once again thwarted the ability of companies to produce goods.
Sian Jones, senior economist at IHS Markit, said in a statement that “added to the challenges in the sector was a decline in customer demand from the highs seen in early 2021.”
Coupled with the growth of new orders at a slower rate than the last six months recorded in 2021, this in large part related to the reluctance of customers to order before inventories are depleted.
“Businesses posted smoother sales price increases amid efforts to attract customer spending,” Jones said.
The chief economist added that the shortage was still significant and that “the end of the year brought with it some signs that cost pressures have eased.”
The United States is suffering a new wave of infections caused by the omicron variant. Only in the last week of 2021 it has reported a record average of 265,427 daily cases in the last week, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Construction spending goes up
At the same time, the United States Department of Commerce revealed that construction spending increased 0.4% in November 2021. This means that the figure for the eleventh month stood at 1,625 million dollars, while that of October stood at 1,618 million of dollars.
In annual comparison, spending in contraction had an increase of 9.3%, revealed the Census Bureau.
Spending on private construction grew 0.6% in November, going from a revised annual rate of 1,265 million dollars in October to 1,273 million in November.
The end of the year brought with it some signs that cost pressures have eased. “
SianJones, economista senior de IHS Market.
For its part, public spending went from 353,000 to 352,300 million dollars between October and November, which represents a decrease of 0.2%, said the Census Bureau.
In the area of educational construction, it had a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $ 82.3 billion, a 1.8% annual increase. The construction of highways had an annual growth rate of 4.1%, with a cost of 102,200 million dollars.
In Mexico
The purchasing managers index of the manufacturing sector in Mexico remained unchanged in December compared to November, standing at 49.4 units. Production, new orders and employment posted faster declines at the close of last year, according to data from IHS Markit.
valores@eleconomista.mx