The S&P PMI manufacturing index rose to 49.7, up from the mid-month flash estimate of 48.8 but still below the 50-growth threshold. This signals that the manufacturing economy is contracting, even as the latter half of November outperformed the earlier half. At 49.7 the PMI manufacturing index is higher than both the consensus estimate (48.8) and October's final (48.5).

This contraction is due to a decline in new orders. However, domestic demand conditions did improve following the results of the Presidential Election. On the other hand, new export orders decreased at a sharper pace. The rate of contraction was the fastest since June 2023 as international demand worsened.

Manufacturing production fell due to hurricane disruption, price increases and a partial hangover from pre-election uncertainty.

November saw business sentiment rise to the joint-highest in just over two and a half years. Firms hope the new administration will help strengthen the business environment. Growing confidence encouraged manufacturers to expand their workforce numbers in November, thereby ending a three-month run of job cuts.

Purchasing activity and stocks of inputs decreased again in November. However, as was the case with new orders, both rates of decline eased and were only slight. Some firms started to purchase additional inputs in response to positive output expectations, while others did so in an effort to get ahead of the potential imposition of tariffs.

Input price inflation eased for the third month in a row. Output price inflation on the other hand, quickened slightly and remained slightly above the pre-pandemic average.

The consensus looks for no change from the November flash at 48.8, which was up marginally from the final 48.5 in October.

Based on monthly questionnaire surveys of selected companies, the Purchasing Managers' Manufacturing Index (PMI) offers an advance indication on month-to-month activity in the private sector economy by tracking changes in variables such as production, new orders, stock levels, employment and prices across manufacturing industries. The final index for the current month is released roughly a week after the flash.

Investors need to keep their fingers on the pulse of the economy because it dictates how various types of investments will perform. By tracking economic data such as the ISM manufacturing index in the U.S. and the Markit PMIs in the U.S. and elsewhere, investors will know what the economic backdrop is for the various markets. The stock market likes to see healthy economic growth because that translates to higher corporate profits. The bond market prefers less rapid growth and is extremely sensitive to whether the economy is growing too quickly and causing potential inflationary pressures.

The Markit PMI manufacturing data give a detailed look at the manufacturing sector, how busy it is and where things are headed. Since the manufacturing sector is a major source of cyclical variability in the economy, this report has a big influence on the markets. And its sub-indexes provide a picture of orders, output, employment and prices.

Markit originally began collecting monthly Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data in the U.S. in April 2004, initially from a panel of manufacturers in the U.S. electronics goods producing sector. In May 2007, Markit's U.S. PMI research was extended out to cover producers of metal goods. In October 2009, Markit's U.S. Manufacturing PMI survey panel was extended further to cover all areas of U.S. manufacturing activity. Back data for Markit's U.S. Manufacturing PMI between May 2007 and September 2009 are an aggregation of data collected from producers of electronic goods and metal goods producers, while data from October 2009 are based on data collected from a panel representing the entire U.S. manufacturing economy. Markit's total U.S. Manufacturing PMI survey panel comprises over 600 companies.