Manufacturing Confidence Climbs, 78% of U.S. Manufacturers Feel Better About 2026

As 2025 wrapped up, a surprising trend emerged in U.S. manufacturing: executives are finally feeling upbeat again. After weathering a turbulent year marked by political uncertainty, tariff noise, and uneven economic data, business leaders in the sector reported confidence rising for the third month in a row ending December on a more optimistic note than much of the rest of corporate America.

According to the latest Chief Executive CEO Confidence Index survey conducted during the first week of December U.S. manufacturers rated current business conditions 5.8 out of 10, nearly matching levels seen before confidence plummeted in March 2025. Leaders are now looking ahead to 2026 with even brighter expectations, projecting that their outlook could improve to 6.3 out of 10 by year-end.

“Many capital projects were put on hold as we waited to see how tariffs would affect sales. In 2026, I think a lot of those projects are finally going to get going,” said Dennis Todd, CEO of specialty products maker Wear-Concepts.

That cautious but growing optimism comes after a year when manufacturers faced challenges that showed up everywhere from consumer sentiment to factory output. U.S. consumer confidence, for example, fell to its lowest level since April late in the year as high prices and tariff concerns pressed households. And while output numbers posted some gains later in the year with manufacturing production rising in recent months, hiring and new orders remained muddled.

Still, many manufacturing executives say the worst may now be behind them. About 55% of manufacturers surveyed expect some kind of economic growth in the next six months, up from the month before, with 73% expecting profits to rise and 78% anticipating increased revenues.

Gerry Lamberti, CEO of Supersprings International, summed up how many feel: “We’ve been offsetting tariffs by going after new markets,” he said.

Not all leaders are completely carefree. Roughly a quarter still expect economic weakness ahead, especially those in sectors tied to consumer spending. Labor headwinds including a shrinking manufacturing workforce for the third-year running add another layer of concern.

But compared with the deeper pessimism seen earlier in 2025, this shift feels meaningful. It mirrors broader data showing some stabilization in production activity and output indexes across the U.S. economy. In the S&P Global manufacturing PMI, for instance, recent readings moved back above growth territory, signaling the sector has begun expanding again after contraction earlier in the year.

Taken together, the votes of confidence from CEOs suggest that although the path ahead may still have bumps from trade policy to consumer demand, the manufacturing sector may be pressing into the new year with real momentum. For many leaders, the question isn’t whether recovery is coming, but how fast and uneven it will feel across regions and industries.