All articles tagged with #manufacturing
Barron’s argues artificial intelligence is turning aerospace and manufacturing into potential stock winners, highlighting GE Aerospace and five others (Heico, Howmet Aerospace, Eaton, Vertiv, and nVent) as beneficiaries with generally high buy ratings versus the S&P 500.
A CBI–Energy UK report warns that surging energy costs—electricity up about 70% and gas around 60% higher since Russia’s invasion—plus rising bills for almost 90% of firms, have led about 40% to cut investment, risking deindustrialisation and a wider trade deficit. It calls for a comprehensive reform of the energy market and stronger grid investment, with a government response that includes more targeted relief for heavy users, while broader reforms are pursued through a joint taskforce.
MIT researchers retrofit a four-extruder 3D printer to produce a fully functional linear motor using five materials in about three hours, slashing prototype costs to roughly $0.50 and signaling a path toward on-demand manufacturing and replacement parts—even as printing complete vehicles remains far off.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz plans a Beijing trip with a large business delegation as Germany signals a policy rethink toward China: with the Chinese market cooling and German industry increasingly viewing China as a threat to its interests, Berlin faces pressure to voice concerns rather than simply deepen ties.
Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz says the U.S. economy is set to weaken, citing tariff-driven inflation that hits lower-income households hardest, a continuing decline in manufacturing and blue-collar jobs, and concerns about future interest-rate policy amid debates over AI-driven productivity and Fed credibility.
Chinese humanoid robots wowed audiences at the 2026 Spring Festival Gala with kung fu, aerial flips and choreographed routines, signaling a rapid year-over-year leap and reinforcing China’s lead in robot deployments and lower production costs. Analysts say the progress is real and potentially economically meaningful for task-focused work, but caution that reliability in unstructured environments and AI model performance will determine long-term impact.
The Trump administration finalized a broad reciprocal trade agreement with Indonesia that eliminates tariffs on over 99% of U.S. exports, tackles non-tariff barriers on standards, labeling, and IP, advances digital trade and supply-chain resilience, and includes forced-labor reforms; it also foresees roughly $33 billion in U.S. investment and purchases in energy, aerospace (Boeing), and agriculture, plus a Freeport-McMoRan expansion, with domestic steps expected to bring the agreement into effect.
Boeing announced its Defense, Space and Security headquarters will move back to St. Louis from Arlington, reuniting the unit with the region that housed it from 1997–2017. The relocation aims to bring leaders closer to major engineering, production and manufacturing centers, with the St. Louis area employing more than 18,000 Boeing workers across three facilities. The move was celebrated by state and federal officials and follows last year’s 15-week machinists strike, which ended after voters approved a new contract.
Johnson & Johnson announced a more-than-$1 billion plan to build a next-generation cell-therapy manufacturing facility on a 154-acre site in Spring House, Lower Gwynedd, to expand U.S. manufacturing for cancer, immune-mediated and neurological diseases. The project is expected to create about 4,000 construction jobs and 500 skilled biomanufacturing roles; J&J already operates a large facility in the area with about 2,500 workers. Pennsylvania officials welcomed the investment as a boost to the state's life sciences and workforce.
China’s CCTV Spring Festival Gala showcased humanoid and quadruped robots from Unitree and peers performing acrobatic kung‑fu and practical tasks, signaling rapid progress in robotics and AI amid US‑China tech rivalry. The show, along with ByteDance’s AI features, illustrated Beijing’s push to upgrade manufacturing and brand China as a tech powerhouse, though some observers criticized the emphasis on androids over humans. Analysts say 2026 could pivot robotics from stage spectacles to real‑world industrial use, with industry leaders urging continued investment in the sector.
China showcased advanced dancing humanoid robots at the Spring Festival Gala to highlight progress in robotics and AI, underscoring Beijing’s push to scale production and pivot from low-cost assembly to smart manufacturing. Experts say the performance signals capability in synchronized motion but warn it doesn’t prove industrial robustness or real-world adaptability. The display fits into a broader state-led tech push, with China reporting hundreds of thousands of robotics firms and vast capital, and analysts predicting growing humanoid sales amid ongoing US-China tech competition. Prominent voices note the spectacle is as much about policy and propaganda as it is about industrial progress.
Whirlpool is cutting nearly 350 jobs at its Amana, Iowa, refrigerator plant—about a quarter of the 1,500 employees—as part of a multi-year modernization to broaden and diversify production. Layoffs begin March 9, with potential additional reductions later; the company will offer on-site HR support and unemployment guidance, and recall rights for affected workers are limited.
King Liu, founder of Giant Group, died at 93. He built Giant from a Taiwan OEM into Asia's leading bike maker and a global brand, expanded overseas, and promoted cycling culture through initiatives like the International Tour of Taiwan and CADEX carbon bikes; he retired in 2017 and funeral arrangements will follow the family's wishes.
The piece argues that the nostalgia for reviving U.S. manufacturing through “Make America Great Again” is politically appealing but economically ineffective: manufacturing employs less than 8% of jobs and has not rebounded to pre-COVID output despite large policy spending; tariffs raise input costs since most imports are components used by domestic firms, diminishing competitiveness; the economy has shifted toward services, with manufacturing productivity growth slowing, and only a few strategic sectors merit targeted support rather than broad protectionist policies that harm consumers and fail to deliver durable jobs.
The Verge reports Trump Mobile’s first smartphone, the T1, is still coming this year, but its design and manufacture have moved away from the earlier US-made promise: final assembly will take place in Miami, the camera array has been redesigned, and prices could rise from the $499 introductory price for early depositors to as high as $999 for later buyers.