Economics
U.S. Factory Gauge Slumps to Six-Month Low Amid Trade War
An employee moves an order of walls on a forklift at the Blueprint Robotics facility in Baltimore.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
A gauge of U.S. manufacturing fell by more than forecast to a six-month low, as orders and hiring cooled amid escalating trade tensions with China, data from the Institute for Supply Management showed Thursday.
The report may add to concerns that President Donald Trump’s trade war with China is starting to inflict more pain on manufacturing even as the industry continues to expand. The export-orders gauge fell for the third time in four months, while new orders decelerated for the fourth month in five.