Indicators
US Manufacturing Gauge Contracts at Fastest Pace in Three Months
- October ISM index fell to 46.7, weaker than all forecasts
- Gauge of new orders decreased to lowest level since May
This article is for subscribers only.
A measure of US factory activity stumbled to a three-month low as sagging orders and scant production growth undercut hopes that manufacturing is turning the corner after an extended retreat.
The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing gauge fell 2.3 points, the biggest monthly decrease in more than a year, to 46.7. Readings below 50 indicate contraction, and the October index trailed all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists.