US manufacturing activity shrinks in Apr for 6th consecutive month

The five manufacturing industries that reported growth during the month are: printing and related support activities; apparel, leather and allied products; petroleum and coal products; fabricated metal products; and transportation equipment, ISM manufacturing business survey committee chair Timothy R Fiore, said in a release.

The April manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) registered 47.1 per cent, 0.8 percentage point higher than the 46.3 per cent recorded in March.

Regarding the overall economy, this figure indicates a fifth month of contraction after a 30-month period of expansion, Fiore noted.

The new orders index remained in contraction territory at 45.7 per cent, 1.4 percentage points higher than 44.3 per cent recorded in March.

The production index reading of 48.9 per cent is a 1.1-percentage point increase compared to March’s 47.8 per cent.

The prices index registered 53.2 per cent, up by 4 percentage points compared to March’s 49.2 per cent.

The backlog of orders index registered 43.1 per cent, 0.8 percentage point lower than March’s 43.9 per cent.

The supplier deliveries index figure of 44.6 per cent is 0.2 percentage point lower than the 44.8 per cent recorded in March; this is the index’s lowest reading since March 2009 (43.2 per cent).

The inventories index dropped by 1.2 percentage points to 46.3 per cent, lower than the March’s 47.5 percent.

The new export orders index reading of 49.8 per cent is 2.2 percentage points higher than March’s 47.6 percent.

The imports index remained in contraction territory, though just barely, at 49.9 per cent, 2 percentage points above the 47.9 per cent reported in March.

“New order rates remain sluggish as panelists remain concerned about when manufacturing growth will resume….Supply chains are prepared and eager for growth, as panelists’ comments support reduced lead times for their more important purchases. Price instability remains and future demand is uncertain as companies continue to work down overdue deliveries and backlogs,” Fiore said.

Seventy-three per cent of manufacturing gross domestic product (GDP) is contracting, up from 70 per cent in March.

However, fewer industries contracted strongly; the proportion of manufacturing GDP with a composite PMI calculation at or below 45 percent—a good barometer of overall manufacturing weakness—was 12 per cent in April compared to 25 per cent in March, he added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)