Factory activity as measured by the Institute for Supply Management, formerly the National Association of Purchasing Management, rose to an index level of 48.2 in December.
The Dow was up 80 points before pulling back after the Institute for Supply Management's purchasing manager index fell last month.
Earlier this week, the Institute for Supply Management's July purchasing managers index showed a continued contraction.
The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing purchasing managers' index unexpectedly fell to a reading of 49 in May, which reflects a contracting economy.
On the economic front Tuesday, the nonmanufacturing sector expanded at a faster pace than a month earlier, bucking economists' forecasts for it to slow, according to the Institute for Supply Management's nonmanufacturing purchasing managers index for February.
The manufacturing sector grew at its fastest pace since June 2011 in February, according to the Institute of Supply Management's manufacturing purchasing managers' index, while U.S. consumer confidence was at its highest level since November, according to Thomson-Reuters and University of Michigan's consumer-sentiment index.
The Institute for Supply Management's Chicago-area purchasing managers' index for February posted a surprise increase.
This in turn came after an unexpected decline in the manufacturing purchasing index put out Monday by the Institute for Supply Management.
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It pioneered the use of bar-code scanners, slick supply chains and inventory management tweaked to local purchasing preferences.
The Institute for Supply Management, in its twice-yearly forecast, said purchasing managers were optimistic about 2007, both in manufacturing and in other industries.
Some of the other key U.S. economic indicators next week include personal income and spending Monday, Chicago Purchasing Managers Index and consumer confidence on Tuesday, ADP private-sector employment report and Institute for Supply Management manufacturing PMI Wednesday, and initial jobless claims Thursday.
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