Manufacturing Round Table: January Fed Statistical Report & ISM Report Analysis
From Manufacturing Talk Radio by Manufacturing Talk Radio
February 25, 2026 · 33 min
About this episode
The episode discusses the January Federal Reserve industrial production release and ISM report, highlighting improvements in manufacturing and global supply chain challenges.
Lewis Weiss hosts another Manufacturing Round Table with economist Cliff Waldman and Chris Kuehl to compare the January Federal Reserve industrial production release and the ISM report. After a year-long manufacturing slump, they point to improving signals: manufacturing within industrial production rose 0.8% month over month with broad-based gains, and the ISM index climbed to 52.7, moving above the 50 expansion threshold. The discussion widens to global uncertainty affecting supply chains, shifting trade patterns as China routes production through other countries, and concern that U.S. policy risks damaging critical trade and supply-chain ties with Canada. They also highlight workforce shortages, demographics, and unclear ROI from rapid AI investment. 00:00 Welcome and Agenda 01:45 Why These Reports Matter 02:22 Fed and ISM Show Uptick 03:24 Caution and Tariff Drag 04:54 Capital Spending on Hold 07:11 Global Uncertainty and Supply Chains 10:02 China Trade Shifts and Workarounds 13:28 Canada Risks and North America 17:48 Looking Ahead to 2026 19:05 Workforce Shortage and AI Hype 21:02 Training Pipelines and Demographics 27:24 Financing Manufacturing Startups 28:42 Wrap Up and…
People in this episode
Host: Lewis Weiss
Guests: Cliff Waldman, Chris Kuehl
Topics covered
- manufacturing reports
- economic analysis
- supply chain
- trade patterns
- workforce issues
- AI investment
Keywords
- manufacturing
- Federal Reserve
- ISM report
- supply chain
- China trade
- workforce shortage
- AI investment
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Federal Reserve, ISM
Places: China, Canada
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