From Morningstar:

Purchasing Manager Indexes (PMI) are key economic indicators derived from questionnaires answered by purchasing managers. They provide insights into the health of manufacturing, services, and construction sectors. PMI values range from zero to 100, with numbers above 50 indicating expansion and below 50 indicating contraction.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) and S&P Global are major research institutes publishing PMI indices. ISM’s monthly report analyzes responses from US companies’ purchasing managers since 1948. S&P Global’s data covers manufacturing, services, and construction sectors in the Eurozone, UK, and individual countries.

PMI indices offer real-time data on orders, inventories, prices, and employment, providing a solid sector health overview. However, they should not be the sole basis for investment decisions due to limited data scope. These indices are crucial for investors to gauge market sentiment and anticipate stock market trends as leading indicators.



Read more at Morningstar: What Are PMIs? | Morningstar