Last Thursday, the ISM’s manufacturing index fell a bit short of expectations; it reflected growth, but at a slower rate than in August. According to Steven Roge, a portfolio manager at R.W. Roge & Company, the manufacturing index tends to be the more volatile than its sibling, so it’s reasonable to expect the manufacturing index to increase more sharply as the economy starts to turn around – and also to hit more bumps on the road to recovery.