{
  "id": 8307268,
  "title": "EJ Antoni: “Manufacturing profits soar on Trump reforms: End Iran war to keep boom going”",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/ej-antoni-manufacturing-profits-soar-on-trump-reforms-end-iran-war-to",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-18T20:13:09.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Econbrowser",
    "slug": "econbrowser",
    "url": "https://econbrowser.com/archives/2026/09/ej-antoni-manufacturing-profits-soar-on-trump-reforms-end-iran-war-to-keep-boom-going"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "EJ Antoni, Chief Economist of Heritage, reported in the Washington Times that corporate net income after tax has surged, according to data from the Census. This surge is particularly notable in the second quarter. However, when considering manufacturing profits with inventory valuation adjustments, the situation appears slightly different. The figure for manufacturing profits, adjusted for inventory valuation, contrasts with the corporate net income after tax figure, both presented in billions of 2017 dollars, adjusted for seasonal adjustment and real (constant) values.\n\nThe data, sourced from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and the Census Bureau, and calculated by the author, shows that corporate profits after tax have indeed seen a significant increase. Yet, it remains uncertain whether the profits with valuation adjustments, before taxes, have seen such a marked change. This is because some equipment costs can be fully expensed, which would boost after-tax income without necessarily indicating a higher underlying productivity within the sector.\n\nMoreover, Q2's data includes IEEPA tariff refunds, which could influence the perceived surge in corporate profits. On the positive side, ending the US-Iran war could provide a boost to the manufacturing sector. This is because such an outcome could lead to reduced energy costs, more relaxed supply chain constraints, and lower policy uncertainty.",
  "summary": "That’s EJ Antoni, Chief Economist of Heritage, writing three days ago in the Washington Times: Dr. Antoni is writing about corporate net income after tax. That has definitely soared. Of course, looking at manufacturing profits with inventory valuation adjustments, things look a little differently. Figure 1: Manufacturing profits with inventory valuation adjustment fm BEA (blue), […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BBC Business",
        "title": "'We simply don't know' - JP Morgan struggling to forecast oil prices due to Trump's war with Iran",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/we-simply-dont-know-jp-morgan-struggling-to-forecast-oil-prices-due",
        "published": "2026-09-18T17:57:30.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}