The Chicago Fed's Take on the US' "Manufacturing Moment"

At WIRE-Net, we are glad to see the string of positive job reports in the US manufacturing sector.  We are also glad to see all the new friends of US manufacturing, including elected officials, economists, think tanks and policy wonks -- both inside and outside the Capitol Beltway.  But, lets get real.  The US economy shed over 5.7 million manufacturing jobs in the 2000s.  In Ohio, over 3300 manufacturing firms closed their doors in the same period.  Gaining about 500,000 total mfg jobs since the bottom of the financial crisis does not constitute a full blown manufacturing recovery.

So we appreciated the view of the Chicago Fed's Bill Testa on the prospects for a full manufacturing rebound: 

Manufacturing: Been down so long, it looks like up?
Those having keen interests in the U.S. manufacturing sector are somewhat encouraged by its performance over the past three years. The sector has bounced back sharply since the end of the severe 2008–09 recession. Job growth in manufacturing is running up 2 percent on a year-over-year basis, and the sector has recovered three-quarters of the output lost during the 2008-09 recession. Encouragement about manufacturing prospects derives not only from the recent bounce, but also from the possibility that the change in direction may represent a turnaround in manufacturing’s fortunes that will be sustained over the longer term. The previous peak in manufacturing jobs took place as far back as the 1990s, so this new direction, particularly if it holds up over a long horizon, would be a welcome change.