US ISM Manufacturing PMI declines to 48.7 in April vs. 48 expected

• The ISM Manufacturing PMI remained in contraction territory below 50 in April.
• US Dollar Index stays in positive territory near 100.00 after the data.

The business activity in the United States (US) manufacturing sector continued to contracted in April, with the ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) edging lower to 48.7 from 49 in March. This reading came in better than the market expectation of 48.

The Employment Index improved to 46.5 from 44.7 in this period, pointing to a decrease in the sector's payrolls at a softening pace. In the meantime, the Prices Paid Index, the inflation component of the survey, rose to 69.8 from 69.4.

Assessing the survey's findings, "in April, US manufacturing activity slipped marginally further into contraction after expanding only marginally in February," said Timothy R. Fiore, CPSM, Chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "Demand and output weakened while input strengthened further, conditions that are not considered positive for economic growth."

Market reaction

The US Dollar (USD) holds its ground after this report. At the time of press, the USD Index was up 0.33% on the day at 99.95.