U.S. Manufacturing PMI in March Declines as Coronavirus Outbreak Intensifies
April 01 2020 - 10:32AM
Dow Jones News
By Dave Sebastian
U.S. manufacturing activity in March fell at its fastest pace
since August 2009 as the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. has
battered businesses.
The reading for the index was 48.5, a drop from 50.7 in
February, IHS Markit said. Domestic and foreign demand have fallen
as companies shuttered factories and laid off staff, the firm
said.
Output contracted in March, and average selling prices fell at
the steepest rate for more than four years as firms offer more
promotions to clients, IHS Markit said. New orders also fell at
their fastest pace since June 2009 on slumping demand.
Employment fell at its quickest pace in more than a decade, the
firm said. The level of confidence about the future fell to its
lowest degree since IHS Markit began collecting data for the index
in July 2012, it said.
"While some producers reported being busier as a result of
stockpiling and anti-virus activities, notably in the food and
healthcare sectors, these are very much the minority, and most
sectors reported a rapid deterioration in demand and production,"
IHS Markit Chief Economist Chris Williamson said.
Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 01, 2020 10:17 ET (14:17 GMT)
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