First Coast manufacturing was generally flat in November, with signs of improvement

First Coast manufacturers put the brakes on contraction for the first time in months in November, though the general industrial picture was flat.

The University of North Florida (UNF) Jacksonville Economic Monitoring Survey (JEMS) shows several sectors of the manufacturing elements expanded in November, the most upbeat turnaround on the First Coast in several months. Seven out of the 12 elements of the UNF survey showed the Purchase Managers Index (PMI) expanded last month. That’s a big change from October, when only two sectors showed expansion.

“Jacksonville’s headline PMI of 50 in November indicates that local manufacturing activity was essentially flat. This stands in contrast to the national PMI of 48.2, which shows that U.S. manufacturing continued to contract at a faster pace,” said Albert Loh, Interim Dean of the UNF Coggin College of Business who oversees the JEMS survey.

“Still, a flat PMI is relatively positive when compared with deeper national declines and highlights Jacksonville’s resilience heading toward 2026.”

UNF researchers from the JEMS project reach out to First Coast manufacturing companies each month to see where they stand on production and several other factors.

One of the key factors that showed expansion for North Florida manufacturers in October was output, which jumped from a 49 figure in October to 53 in November.

“A reading of 53 suggests a modest but meaningful pickup in business activity in the region. While not signaling a boom, it reflects resilience and indicates that local firms are navigating cost pressures, supply chain adjustments, and mixed demand with cautious optimism,” the JEMS report concluded.

New orders, another high-profile manufacturing element, also showed a substantial uptick increasing from a figure of 49 in October to 52 in November.

“New orders are a leading indicator, so this improvement points to potentially stronger production, hiring, and inventory activity ahead,” the JEMS report said.

Other factors that showed expansion in North Florida last month included output prices, average input prices, quantity of input purchased, inventory of input purchased and business activity outlook over the next year.

Key elements that are still sluggish with contraction included employment, backlogs of work, finished goods inventory and suppliers’ delivery times. New export orders were unchanged.