The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing purchasing managers index, released Tuesday, fell to 51.1 in August from 52.7 in July.
Manufacturing Index, US
The ISM survey’s exports index declined to 46.5 last month from 48 in July. That gauge has slid each month since May—the last time it was at a break-even level.
The new-orders index, often viewed as a leading indicator of factory activity, fell to 51.7 from 56.5, suggesting caution among customers as they watched China’s economic outlook deteriorate over the last month.
The Institute for Supply Management’s nonmanufacturing purchasing managers index, meanwhile, fell to 59.0 in August from 60.3 in July. The July figure was the highest level since the composite index’s inception in January 2008.
The service sector has expanded for 67 straight months. Of 16 service industries tracked by the ISM, only mining showed a decline in August.
The report’s index for new orders decreased to 63.4 in August from 63.8 in July.