(Bloomberg) -- The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit U.S. CompositePurchasing Managers' Index fell to 53.4 in September -- a 17-month low.
Composite Breakdown:
Flash U.S. Services Business Activity Index at 52.9 (54.8 inAugust). 18-month low
Flash U.S. Manufacturing PMI at 55.6 (54.7 in August). 4-monthhigh
Average prices charged by private sector firms jumped at thefastest pace since the composite survey started almost nine-years ago. Service providers, in particular, raised prices thismonth citing “intense cost pressures” as the reason to passthrough higher labor costs and increased prices for inputssourced from abroad.
Future expectations in both the manufacturing and servicesectors fell to the lowest level this year, and the second-lowest in over two years, as optimism deteriorated.
However, while the overall index suggests that the pace ofeconomic growth slowed to its lowest point in almost one-and-a-half years, the report did show some positive signals. Hiringgrew, “indicative of non-farm payroll growth topping 200,000 inSeptember,” Chris Williamson, economist at IHS Markit said.Further, Williamson noted, “new orders growth accelerating andbacklogs of work rising due to weather-related disruptions, thesurvey data suggest underlying demand remains robust and thatthere's an accumulation of work that will roll over intostronger economic growth in coming months.”
The rise in employment, led by service providers, was thestrongest since May 2015, according to the report.
Final September data will be published on Oct. 1 formanufacturing and Oct. 3 for services and composite indicators.
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