Manufacturers News, an industry publication, says Missouri lost more than 16,000 manufacturing jobs and 475 manufacturers in the last year, through July.  The publication says two-thirds of the companies were small operations with five or fewer workers.  The publication also says Missouri has been hit hard by cutbacks by Ford and General Motors.

Manufacturers News says that almost 420,000 people have manufacturing jobs in Missouri, working for 9,300 manufacturers.  Missouri is 16th in the nation in manufacturing employment.