Updated: 05-Jun-23 10:40 ET

May ISM Non-Manufacturing Index

Updated: 05-Jun-23 10:40 ET

Highlights

• The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index for May decreased to 50.3% (Briefing.com consensus 52.3%) from 51.9% in April.
• The dividing line between expansion and contraction is 50.0%, so the May reading reflects continued growth in the services sector, but at a slower pace than the prior month.

Key Factors

• The New Orders Index dropped to 52.9% from 56.1%.
• The Business Activity/Production Index dipped to 51.5% from 52.0%.
• The Prices Index fell to 56.2% from 59.6%.
• The Employment Index declined to 49.2% from 50.8%.
• The Supplier Deliveries Index slipped to 47.7% from 48.6%, signaling faster delivery times.
• The Backlog of Orders Index contracted to 40.9% from 49.7%.

Big Picture

• The key takeaway from the report is that the majority of respondents indicate business conditions are currently stable, yet concerns relative to the slowing economy have been noted, evidenced in part by the downturn in the employment index into contraction territory after three months of growth.

Category	MAY	APR	MAR	FEB	JAN
Non-Manufacturing ISM index	50.3	51.9	51.2	55.1	55.2
Business Activity	51.5	52.0	55.4	56.3	60.4
New Orders	52.9	56.1	52.2	62.6	60.4
Employment	49.2	50.8	51.3	54.0	50.0
Deliveries (nsa)	47.7	48.6	45.8	47.6	50.0
Inventories (nsa)	58.3	47.2	52.8	50.6	49.2
Exports (nsa)	59.0	60.9	43.7	61.7	59.0
Imports (nsa)	50.0	51.3	43.6	52.6	53.0
Prices Paid	56.2	59.6	59.5	65.6	67.8