More great news on manufacturing as the ISM report pulled back only slightly from that record December read coming in at 59.1, well above consensus of 58.6.  

• Fourteen of eighteen industries reported growth.
• New orders at 65.4 is the ninth consecutive month north of 60.0, a monumental achievement that bodes extremely well for the future.
• Backlog climbed to a 10 year best reading of 65.4, again signaling strong near-term manufacturing growth.
• Employment remains the only negative, but this is generally acknowledged to be a function of lack of skilled workers versus lack of demand. 

ISM Manufacturing January 2018

Construction Spending

Call it the construction spending boom, as overall spending hit a record $41.25 trillion in December paced by record private sector spending of $963.2 billion. 

Private Sector

• Month to Month +0.7%
• Year to Year +2.1%

Construction was powered by residential building, which cannot keep up with demand. 

• Month to Month +0.5%
• Year to year +6.2%