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Good News Friday: Country of Big Shoulders
Manufacturing has been a source of anxiety since at least the late 1980s when Japan seemed ready to eclipse the U.S. as a production and economic colossus. The troubles in the automobile industry in general and Detroit in particular reignited those fears in recent years. But manufacturers are expanding again, leading the broader economy onto firmer ground. The most recent evidence is the January industrial production report, which showed total production rising 0.9 percent. It was the seventh consecutive month of expansion, which hasn’t happened since a stretch in 1997 and early 1998. Strength was widespread across many industries, led by technology.
Lean inventories mean that retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers need to rebuild stocks. But demand appears ready to move beyond inventory replenishment thanks to growth in exports, consumer spending and business investment. This is one reason why industrial space should be among the first commercial real estate sectors to embark on a recovery.
—Bob Bach, Grubb & Ellis Senior Vice President, Chief Economist
