US Manufacturing ISM Contracts for First Time in Three Years; New Orders and Prices Plunge; Perfect Score: 0 of 70 Economists Polled By Bloomberg Expected Contraction

US Manufacturing contracted this month as reported in the June 2012 Manufacturing ISM Report On Business®

Economic activity in the manufacturing sector contracted in June for the first time since July 2009; however, the overall economy grew for the 37th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business®.

"The PMI registered 49.7 percent, a decrease of 3.8 percentage points from May's reading of 53.5 percent, indicating contraction in the manufacturing sector for the first time since July 2009, when the PMI registered 49.2 percent.

The New Orders Index dropped 12.3 percentage points in June, registering 47.8 percent and indicating contraction in new orders for the first time since April 2009, when the New Orders Index registered 46.8 percent.

The Production Index registered 51 percent, and the Employment Index registered 56.6 percent. The Prices Index for raw materials decreased significantly for the second consecutive month, registering 37 percent, which is 10.5 percentage points lower than the 47.5 percent reported in May.

Comments from the panel range from continued optimism to concern that demand may be softening due to uncertainties in the economies in Europe and China."

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