Purchasing Managers Index

Purchasing Managers' Indexes (PMI) are economic indicators derived from monthly surveys of private sector companies. Purchasing Managers' Indexes (PMI) are economic indicators derived from monthly surveys of private sector companies. The three principal producers of PMIs are the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), which originated the manufacturing and non-manufacturing metrics and which produces them for the United States, the Singapore Institute of Purchasing and Materials Management (SIPMM), which produces the Singapore PMI, and the Markit Group, which produces metrics based on ISM's work for over 30 countries worldwide. ISM, SIPMM, and Markit Group separately compile Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) surveys on a monthly basis by polling businesses which represent the makeup of the respective business sector. ISM's surveys cover all NAICS categories. SIPMM survey covers all manufacturing sectors. The Markit survey covers private sector companies, but not the public sector. ISM began to produce the report for the United States in 1948. The surveys are released shortly after the end of the reference period. The actual release dates depend on the sector covered by the survey. Manufacturing data are generally released on the first business day of the month, followed by construction (Markit only) on the second working day, and non-manufacturing/services on the third business day. SIPMM produces the monthly bulletin since 1998 for the Singapore manufacturing sectors, with a focus on the electronics manufacturing sector since 1998. The data are released on the second business day of each month. The Chicago-PMI survey, owned by Deutsche Börse, registers manufacturing and non-manufacturing activity in the Chicago Region. Investors value this indicator because the Chicago region somewhat mirrors the United States overall in its distribution of manufacturing and non-manufacturing activity. The predominant operator and owner of Purchasing Managers Index series outside the USA is the Markit Group. Markit issue most of their PMIs in partnership with other companies. SIPMM is the official Purchasing Managers Index series in Singapore. In 2002, SIPMM assisted China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) to produce the China Official PMI. ISM, SIPMM and Markit Purchasing Managers Indices include additional sub indices for manufacturing surveys such as new orders, employment, exports, stocks of raw materials and finished goods, prices of inputs and finished goods. PMI data are presented in the form of a diffusion index, which is calculated as follows: