Manufacturing in U.S. Expands at Slower Rate Than Forecast

Manufacturing in the U.S. expanded at a slower pace than forecast in May as orders and production eased from the previous month.

The Institute for Supply Management’s factory index fell to a three-month low of 53.2 from the prior month’s 54.9, the Tempe, Arizona-based group’s report showed today. Fifty is the dividing line between growth and contraction. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a gain to 55.5.