The manufacturing sector stayed soundly in expansion territory in June, as the ISM Manufacturing Index registered a strong reading of 60.6. Out of the 18 manufacturing industries surveyed, all but one reported growth last month. It wasn’t all good news, however, as the Prices Paid Index reflected mounting inflation pressures by surging to the highest level since 1979! The Institute for Supply Management expands on some of the reasons behind soaring prices by stating, “Record-long raw-material lead times, wide-scale shortages of critical basic materials, rising commodities prices and difficulties in transporting products are continuing to affect all segments of the manufacturing economy.”
