Dow drops again but ISM gives good news...

I stopped by my favorite local news channel looking for news on our Mayor who was supposed to have a press conference this morning and saw this:

NEW YORK (AP) - Wall Street resumed its plunge after a one-day reprieve as investors, nervous about the impending release of key economic data, took their cues Thursday from declining overseas markets.
The Dow Jones industrials fell more than 120 points to the 12,143 level in the opening minutes of trading, having rebounded half-heartedly on Wednesday from the previous session's huge drop.

Wall Street was clearly nervous as it awaited the 10 a.m. release of the Institute for Supply Management's assessment of manufacturing activity during February. Intensifying concerns about the health of the U.S. economy fed Tuesday's skid that sliced 416 points off the Dow

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As written yesterday, the initial impression was that the Institute of Supply Management Assement was not going to be good. It's now after 10:00 a.m. However, perhaps things will rebound soon, because according to CNN the ISM reported better news than expected in fact the best since September:

The ISM manufacturing index came in at 52.3, up from the 49.3 rating in January. A reading above 50 indicates growth in the sector, while a reading below 50 points to contraction.