US factory activity contracts at slower pace in August

Washington, Sept 2, 2025 (AFP)
Manufacturing activity in the United States shrank for a sixth straight month in August, survey data showed Tuesday, with production pulling back and employment still weak.
The manufacturing index of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM)was 48.7 percent last month, up from 48.0 percent in July.
But the figure was still below the 50-percent reading that would indicate the sector is expanding.
"In August, US manufacturing activity contracted at a slightly slower rate," said ISM survey chair Susan Spence in a statement.
She noted that growth in new orders was the main factor behind the uptick in August's reading.
"However, since production contracted at a rate nearly equal to the expansion in new orders," she added, the overall increase "was nominal."
The new orders index was up 4.3 percentage points to 51.4 percent, while new export orders rose 1.5 percentage points to 47.6 percent.
But the production index slipped by 3.6 percentage points to 47.8 percent, the report said.
The employment index edged up to 43.8 percent but was still in contraction territory, with companies more focused on managing headcount rather than hiring, the report added.
"A 50-percent tariff on imports from Brazil, combined with the US Department of Agriculture's elimination of the specialty sugar quota, means certified organic cane sugar -- and everything made with it -- is about to get significantly more expensive," said a respondent in the food and beverage sector.

Sumber : AFP