ISM Rolls Out Non-Manufacturing Report on Business

The Non-Manufacturing ISM Report On Business was issued by Anthony Nieves, CPSM, C.P.M., CFPM, chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Non-Manufacturing Business Survey Committee.

"The NMI registered 58.6 percent in September, 1 percentage point lower than the August reading of 59.6 percent. This represents continued growth in the non-manufacturing sector. The Non- Manufacturing Business Activity Index decreased to 62.9 percent, which is 2.1 percentage points lower than the August reading of 65 percent, reflecting growth for the 62nd consecutive month at a slower rate. The New Orders Index registered 61 percent, 2.8 percentage points lower than the reading of 63.8 percent registered in August. The Employment Index increased 1.4 percentage points to 58.5 percent from the August reading of 57.1 percent and indicates growth for the seventh consecutive month. The Prices Index decreased 2.5 percentage points from the August reading of 57.7 percent to 55.2 percent, indicating prices increased at a slower rate in September when compared to August. According to the NMI, 12 non- manufacturing industries reported growth in September. Respondents' comments indicate that business seems to be leveling off and there is a slight slowing in the momentum of the past few months of strong growth. They continue to remain optimistic about business conditions and the overall direction of the economy."

According to a release from ISM, the 12 non-manufacturing industries reporting growth in September - listed in order - are: Construction; Retail Trade; Utilities; Information; Health Care & Social Assistance; Transportation & Warehousing; Management of Companies & Support Services; Wholesale Trade; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; Accommodation & Food Services; Real Estate, Rental & Leasing; and Finance & Insurance. The five industries reporting contraction in September are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Mining; Educational Services; Public Administration; and Other Services.

ISM Non-Manufacturing Survey Results at a Glance

Commodities Reported Up/Down in Price, and in Short Supply

Commodities Up in Price: Beef (4); Beef Items (10); Cocoa; #2 Diesel Fuel*; Fuel; Gasoline*; Labor; Medical Supplies; Paper Products (3); Plastic Bags; Propane; Sugar; and X-Ray Supplies.

Commodities Down in Price #1 Diesel Fuel; #2 Diesel Fuel* (2); Eggs; and Gasoline* (3).

Commodities in Short Supply Ammunition; Labor; and Medical IV Solutions (9).

Note: The number of consecutive months the commodity is listed is indicated after each item.*Reported as both up and down in price.

September 2014 Non-Manufacturing Index Summaries

In September, the NMI registered 58.6 percent, a decrease of 1 percentage point when compared to August's reading of 59.6 percent, indicating continued growth in the non-manufacturing sector for the 56th consecutive month. A reading above 50 percent indicates the non- manufacturing sector economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates the non-manufacturing sector is generally contracting.

ISM's Business Activity Index in September registered 62.9 percent, a decrease of 2.1 percentage points below August's reading of 65 percent. This represents growth in business activity for the 62nd consecutive month. Thirteen industries reported increased business activity, and four industries reported decreased activity for the month of September.

The industries reporting growth of business activity in September - listed in order - are: Retail Trade; Utilities; Information; Construction; Management of Companies & Support Services; Health Care & Social Assistance; Transportation & Warehousing; Wholesale Trade; Real Estate, Rental & Leasing; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; Finance & Insurance; Accommodation & Food Services; and Public Administration. The four industries reporting a decrease in business activity in September are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Educational Services; Mining; and Other Services.

ISM's Non-Manufacturing New Orders Index grew in September for the 62nd consecutive month at a slower rate compared to August. The index registered 61 percent, a decrease of 2.8 percentage points from the August reading of 63.8 percent.

The 12 industries reporting growth of new orders in September - listed in order - are: Utilities; Information; Retail Trade; Construction; Health Care & Social Assistance; Wholesale Trade; Transportation & Warehousing; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; Accommodation & Food Services; Management of Companies & Support Services; Finance & Insurance; and Public Administration.

The four industries reporting contraction of new orders in September are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Educational Services; Mining; and Other Services.

Employment activity in the non-manufacturing sector grew in September for the seventh consecutive month. ISM's Non- Manufacturing Employment Index registered 58.5 percent, which reflects an increase of 1.4 percentage points when compared to August's reading of 57.1 percent. Ten industries reported increased employment, and seven industries reported decreased employment.

The 10 industries reporting an increase in employment in September - listed in order - are: Construction; Retail Trade; Management of Companies & Support Services; Transportation & Warehousing; Other Services; Health Care & Social Assistance; Wholesale Trade; Information; Finance & Insurance; and Professional, Scientific & Technical Services.

The seven industries reporting a reduction in employment in September - listed in order - are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Educational Services; Mining; Real Estate, Rental & Leasing; Accommodation & Food Services; Public Administration; and Utilities.

The Supplier Deliveries Index registered 52 percent in September, 0.5 percentage point lower than the 52.5 percent registered in August. A reading above 50 percent indicates slower deliveries, while a reading below 50 percent indicates faster deliveries.

The 10 industries reporting slower deliveries in September - listed in order - are: Real Estate, Rental & Leasing; Construction; Accommodation & Food Services; Utilities; Transportation & Warehousing; Retail Trade; Information; Health Care & Social Assistance; Public Administration; and Wholesale Trade. The three industries reporting faster deliveries in September are: Mining; Finance & Insurance; and Professional, Scientific & Technical Services.

ISM's Non-Manufacturing Inventories registered 52 percent in September, which is 1 percentage point higher than the 51 percent that was reported in August. Of the total respondents in September, 27 percent indicated they do not have inventories or do not measure them.

The seven industries reporting an increase in inventories in September - listed in order - are: Utilities; Mining; Real Estate, Rental & Leasing; Retail Trade; Transportation & Warehousing; Health Care & Social Assistance; and Finance & Insurance.

The eight industries reporting decreases in inventories in September - listed in order - are: Other Services; Management of Companies & Support Services; Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting; Information; Construction; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; Wholesale Trade; and Arts, Entertainment & Recreation.

Prices paid by non-manufacturing organizations for purchased materials and services increased in September for the 60th consecutive month. ISM's Non-Manufacturing Prices Index for September registered 55.2 percent, 2.5 percentage points lower than the 57.7 percent reported in August.

The percentage of respondents reporting higher prices is 16 percent, the percentage indicating no change in prices paid is 75 percent, and 9 percent of the respondents reported lower prices.

Nine non-manufacturing industries reported an increase in prices paid during the month of September, in the following order: Accommodation & Food Services; Retail Trade; Mining; Educational Services; Utilities; Construction; Wholesale Trade; Information; and Health Care & Social Assistance.

The three industries reporting a decrease in prices paid for the month of September are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Finance & Insurance; and Public Administration. Six industries reported no change in prices paid in September compared to August.

ISM's Non-Manufacturing Backlog of Orders Index grew in September for the fifth consecutive month. The index registered 52 percent, which is 2.5 percentage points lower than the 54.5 percent that was reported in August. Of the total respondents in September, 36 percent indicated they do not measure backlog of orders.

The five industries reporting an increase in order backlogs in September are: Utilities; Management of Companies & Support Services; Construction; Retail Trade; and Health Care & Social Assistance.

The six industries reporting a decrease in order backlogs in September - listed in order - are: Mining; Other Services; Public Administration; Accommodation & Food Services; Finance & Insurance; and Professional, Scientific & Technical Services. Six industries reported no change in backlog of orders in September compared to August.

Orders and requests for services and other non-manufacturing activities to be provided outside of the United States by domestically based personnel grew in September for the sixth consecutive month.

The New Export Orders Index for September registered 57.5 percent, which is 5 percentage points higher than the 52.5 percent reported in August. Of the total respondents in September, 66 percent indicated they either do not perform, or do not separately measure, orders for work outside of the United States.

The seven industries reporting an increase in new export orders in September - listed in order - are: Management of Companies & Support Services; Real Estate, Rental & Leasing; Retail Trade; Information; Construction; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; and Wholesale Trade.

The two industries reporting a decrease in export orders in September are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; and Other Services. Eight industries reported no change in export orders in September compared to August.

The ISM Non-Manufacturing Imports Index grew in September for the seventh consecutive month. This month's reading at 52.5 percent is 1.5 percentage points higher than the 51 percent that was reported in August. Fifty-six percent of respondents reported that they do not use, or do not track the use of, imported materials.

The six industries reporting an increase in imports for the month of September - listed in order - are: Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting; Transportation & Warehousing; Management of Companies & Support Services; Construction; Retail Trade; and Wholesale Trade. The two industries reporting a decrease in imports for the month of September are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; and Other Services. Nine industries reported no change in imports in September compared to August.

The ISM Non-Manufacturing Inventory Sentiment Index in September registered 60 percent, which is 5 percentage points higher than the 55 percent reported in August. This indicates that respondents believe their inventories are still too high at this time.

In September, 27 percent of respondents said their inventories were too high, 7 percent said their inventories were too low, and 66 percent said their inventories were about right.

The nine industries reporting a feeling that their inventories are too high in September - listed in order - are: Arts, Entertainment & Recreation; Utilities; Management of Companies & Support Services; Wholesale Trade; Finance & Insurance; Mining; Information; Accommodation & Food Services; and Retail Trade. The five industries reporting a feeling that their inventories are too low in September are: Transportation & Warehousing; Construction; Health Care & Social Assistance; Professional, Scientific & Technical Services; and Public Administration.

The data presented herein is obtained from a survey of non- manufacturing supply managers based on information they have collected within their respective organizations. ISM makes no representation, other than that stated, regarding the individual company data collection procedures. The data should be compared to all other economic data sources when used in decision-making.

The Non-Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is based on data compiled from purchasing and supply executives nationwide. Membership of the Non-Manufacturing Business Survey Committee is diversified by NAICS, based on each industry's contribution to gross domestic product (GDP).

The Non-Manufacturing ISM Report On Business survey is sent out to Non-Manufacturing Business Survey Committee respondents the first part of each month. Respondents are asked to only report on information for the current month.

The industries reporting growth, as indicated in the Non- Manufacturing ISM Report On Business monthly report, are listed in the order of most growth to least growth. For the industries reporting contraction or decreases, those are listed in the order of the highest level of contraction/decrease to the least level of contraction/decrease.

The next Non-Manufacturing ISM Report On Business featuring the October 201410 a.m. (ET) on Wednesday, November 5.

The Non-Manufacturing ISM Report On Business is published monthly by Institute for Supply Management, a supply institute.

Report information:

www.ism.ws

((Comments on this story may be sent to [email protected]))