Growing volume

Post date: Mar 11, 2014 8:41:15 PM

• • Highway traffic is growing at a faster pace than the United States economy, according to one study. Traffic congestion on the nation’s highways increased 6% in 2013 over the previous year, traffic tracking firm Inrix Inc. reported. That rate is more than three times the growth of U.S. gross domestic product, which increased 1.9% last year. According to the study, the four most congested U.S. cities are Los Angeles, Honolulu, San Francisco and Austin, Texas.

  • Manufacturing growth has slowed in most of the world over the past month, but not in the United States. Factory activity in the U.S. for February reached its highest level since 2010, with a Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) of 53.2%. A PMI reading of more than 50% indicates growth in the manufacturing sector, according to the Institute for Supply Management. According to the institute’s findings, February was the ninth straight month that activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector has increased.