Declining orders drag Chicago PMI lower for sixth consecutive month in May

Factory sector a activity in the Chicago area slowed for a sixth month running in May, the results of a survey showed.

Market News International's purchasing managers' index slipped by 2.5 points from the previous month to reach 35.4.

Any reading below 50 points on the index was indicative of shrinking levels of activity.

Falling orders were the chief reason for the decline in the index.

Subindices tracking new orders and order backlogs both fell to levels last seen in May 2020.

The former dropped by a hefty 9.2 points and the latter by 8 points and in the process undoing the previous month's gains.

A subindex linked to output levels did rise by 8.1 points to its best level since January.

The subindex for prices paid slipped by 0.9 points.