COMMODITIES REPORTED UP/DOWN IN PRICE and IN SHORT SUPPLY

Commodities Up in Price

Aluminum (11); Brass; Copper (12); Copper Based Products (9); Electric/Electronic Components; Metal Parts; Plastic Products (7); Polyethylene(b) (2); Rubber Products (6); Steel(b) (11); Steel Products (8); and Titanium Dioxide (4).

Commodities Down in Price

Corn; Diesel Fuel; Ethylene; Gasoline; HDPE; LDPE; Polyethylene(b); Polypropylene; Soybean Oil; Steel(b) (3); and Wheat.

Commodities in Short Supply

Butadiene; and Electric/Electronic Components (7).

Note: The number of consecutive months the commodity is listed is indicated after each item.

(b) Reported as both up and down in price.

JULY 2011 MANUFACTURING INDEX SUMMARIES

PMI

Manufacturing continued its growth in July as the PMI registered 50.9 percent, a decrease of 4.4 percentage points when compared to June’s reading of 55.3 percent. The PMI registered the lowest reading since July 2009, when it registered 49 percent. A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally contracting.

A PMI in excess of 42.5 percent, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy. Therefore, the PMI indicates growth for the 26th consecutive month in the overall economy, as well as expansion in the manufacturing sector for the 24th consecutive month. Holcomb stated, “The past relationship between the PMI and the overall economy indicates that the average PMI for January through July (57.6 percent) corresponds to a 5.3 percent increase in real gross domestic product (GDP). In addition, if the PMI for July (50.9 percent) is annualized, it corresponds to a 2.9 percent increase in real GDP annually.”

THE LAST 12 MONTHS