economist

Oliver Allen, economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said the gradual easing of tariff-related uncertainty, lower interest rates and an investment boost from tax incentives could lift manufacturing output slightly in the first half of next year.

A consensus of economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected the index to rise to 48.8.

Many economists and investors expect AI to come to the rescue, ushering in a productivity boom in the next few years that will lift gross domestic product and bolster U.S. competitiveness.

The markets economist expects much of Asia should to keep benefiting from a shift in U.S. demand away from China, and strong global appetite for artificial-intelligence related exports.

While policymakers at the central bank have signaled that a rate hike is likely in the near future, market participants and economists have been divided on when it will happen.