US ISM Manufacturing Index Bettered. First Rise Since June 2008

The ISM manufacturing survey rose slightly to 35.6 in January from December's 32.9 (revised up from 32.4). The market was expecting a reading of 32.5. New orders rose to 33.2 from the prior month's 23.1 (revised up from 22.7). Prices paid rose to 29 from December's reading of 18. Employment remained at a weak 29.9 for the second month in a row. The revisions to the prior month's numbers were based on the Institute of Supply Management's annual seasonal adjustments that are released at the beginning of each year.

US Personal Spending Falls, Could Trigger Down GDP Revision

US personal spending fell a greater-than-expected 1 percent during the month of December, marking the sixth straight month of declines. At the same time, personal income slipped 0.2 percent to cap off the longest stretch of declines since November 1953 - January 1954.

U.K. Manufacturing Unexpectedly Improved

The U.K. January manufacturing PMI unexpectedly improved to 35.8 from 34.9 in the previous month. Our forecast and median was 34.8, so data was much better than anticipated and the rebound came unexpectedly, even though it is in line with the improvement in the Euro-Zone PMIs that month. The outlook is uncertain and setbacks are still possible, but the numbers raise hopes that confidence is slowly starting to bottom out in Europe, which supports expectations for a gradual improvement in economic activity later in the year.