• The U.S. economy grew 2.6% at the annual rate in the fourth quarter. Real GDP in the manufacturing sector rose by an annualized 5.5% in the third quarter, adding 0.49 percentage points to headline real GDP growth in the third quarter.
  • Manufacturing value-added output increased to $2.895 trillion in the fourth quarter, an all-time high, with record levels for both durable and nondurable goods. Manufacturing accounted for 11.1% of value-added output in the U.S. economy in the fourth quarter, the most since the third quarter of 2019.
  • The current forecast is for 2.0% growth at the annual rate for the first quarter of 2023. In the most recent NAM Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey, nearly half of respondents felt that there would be a recession this year. With that said, a “soft landing”—with the economy avoiding a recession—remains possible, likely hinging on continued strength in the labor market and some built-in resilience in the economy.
  • In the latest NAM outlook survey, 74.7% of respondents felt positive in their company outlook, up from 68.9% in the fourth quarter, which had been the lowest since the third quarter of 2020. Three-quarters of manufacturers cited the inability to attract and retain employees as their top primary challenge, followed by concerns about increased raw material costs and supply chain challenges.