US firms signal further biz activity expansion in Q2 2023: Report

Jobs growth meanwhile sank to the slowest since January. Although higher wages added to firms’ costs, selling price inflation for goods and services hit a 32-month low.

At 53 in June, the headline S&P global flash US purchasing managers’ index (PMI) composite output index indicated a fifth successive monthly increase in activity across the private sector.

The latest index figure was below the 54.3 seen in May and signalled the slowest upturn in output since March.

Confidence dipped to a six-month low among manufacturers amid concerns regarding inflation and lower sales.

Manufacturers weighed on the overall expansion, as goods producers recorded a solid decline in production after three months of growth. Factory production fell at the steepest rate since January.

Driving the trend in output was a further rise in new orders at firms. Although slightly softer than that seen in May, the rate of growth remained solid and was the second-fastest in just over a year.

Manufacturers saw a sharp fall in new export orders.

Following a loss of momentum in May, price pressures gained intensity in June. The rate of cost inflation across goods picked up to a robust pace.

Despite a sharper rise in cost burdens, US firms raised their selling prices at the slowest pace since October 2020, S&P said in a release.

The increase in manufacturing factory gate charges was the softest for three years, as firms sought to boost sales and pass on supplier price falls.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)