I.E's manufacturing industry still declining

   A local manufacturing index shows the Inland Empire's manufacturing sector continues to shrink for the fifth consecutive month.

   "With the continuation of bad economic news ... it is no surprise that the PMI (Purchasing Manager's Index) remains low (at 34.7)," said researchers Shel Bockman and Barbara Sirotnik in a report published Monday by the Institute of Applied Research and Policy Analysis at Cal State San Bernardino.

   A PMI below 41.1 over three straight months means the sector's shrinking has become a trend, the report says.

   "The local employment index has been below the 50 baseline figure for over a year," the report says.  Also, two key PMI indicators -- the production and new orders indices -- stayed below the 50 mark for the sixth straight month.