US Slowdown Concerns Weigh on Risk Appetite
The dollar is steadying, Treasury yields are moving sideways, and equity futures are down after Monday’s session brought new evidence of the growing headwinds facing the US economy – raising hopes for earlier policy easing from the Federal Reserve while also challenging earnings expectations. Yesterday’s Institute for Supply Management manufacturing survey proved disappointing. The factory sector remained in negative territory, with the headline index unexpectedly declining to 48.7, down from 49.2 in the prior month, and well below the 50 threshold that separates expansion from contraction. Most worrisomely, the new orders sub-index fell below inventories, suggesting that businesses could slow...