- Prior was 51.7
- Manufacturing 49.9 vs 52.0 expected
- Prior manufacturing reading 51.9
- Composite PMI 50.9 vs 52.1 prior
- April saw an overall reduction in new orders for the first time in six months
- Companies responded by scaling back employment for the first time in almost four years
- business confidence fell to the lowest since last November
- Rates of inflation generally eased at the start of the second quarter, with both input costs and output prices rising less quickly at the composite level
- However manufacturing input cost inflation hit a one-year high
- Some service providers suggested that elevated interest rates and high prices had restricted demand during the month
That last line is a good sign that the Fed doesn't need to hike rates further to restrain inflation/activity.
From Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence:
“The US economic upturn lost momentum at the start of the second quarter, with the flash PMI survey respondents reporting below-trend business activity growth in April. Further pace may be lost in the coming months, as April saw inflows of new business fall for the first time in six months and firms’ future output expectations slipped to a five-month low amid heightened concern about the outlook.
“The more challenging business environment prompted companies to cut payroll numbers at a rate not seen since the global financial crisis if the early pandemic lockdown months are excluded.
“The deterioration of demand and cooling of the labor market fed through to lower price pressures, as April saw a welcome easing in rates of increase for selling prices for both goods and services. “Notably, the drivers of inflation have changed. Manufacturing has now registered the steeper rate of price increases in three of the past four months, with factory cost pressures intensifying in April amid higher raw material and fuel prices, contrasting with the wage- related services-led price pressures seen throughout much of 2023.”
The US dollar has dropped on this report. There's some fresh talk of a March/April weakening in the US economy and that could be showing up in this survey, which is a forward-looking metric.
