Closing post
Time for a quick recap.
UK and European gas prices have jumped to their highest level this year following an outage at a gas processing plant in Norway, which has disrupted supplies to the UK.
The UK manufacturing sector has returned to growth, with output expanding at the quickest pace in over two years in May on the back of improved intakes of new work.
The Labour party has indicated its support for Shein’s potential London listing, as the Chinese online fashion company prepares to push the button on the UK’s biggest ever stock market flotation.
Shares in GSK have tumbled 9%, wiping around £6bn off its market value, after a US judge ruled that lawsuits alleging that heartburn treatment Zantac caused cancer could proceed.
The US manufacturing sector lost momentum in May, according to the latest healthcheck from the Institute of Supply Management (ISM).
The ISM manufacturing PMI, released this afternoon, fell further into contraction territory with a drop to 48.7, from 49.2, mainly due to a fall in new orders.
ISM manufacturing comes in below expectations at 48.7 vs 49.2 last month. New orders 45.4 vs 49.1 and prices paid index 57.0 vs 60.9.
— Kathy Jones (@KathyJones) June 3, 2024
Capital Economics explains:
The drop in the ISM manufacturing index in May adds to the sense that the economy is losing momentum, while the drop back in the prices paid index should soothe concerns about a potential renewed rise in goods price pressures.
The ISM has not been a particularly good leading indicator of activity over the past 18 months, however, and the decline is at odds with the S&P Global manufacturing PMI, which rallied a little last month.
