The ISM Manufacturing PMI jumped 1.7 pts to 50.9 in January, beating expectations of a slight contraction at 49.8. Both New Orders and Production were in a moderate expansion increasing 3.0 pts to 55.1 and 2.6 pts to 52.5 respectively. One of the surprises in the report was a bounce in the Employment index, up 4.9 pts to 50.3, which pointed to a slight increase in hiring and the first time that employment increased among manufacturing firms since May 2024. Healthier business conditions led to a faster increase in prices with the Prices index up 2.4 pts to 54.9, the highest since May 2024.