By Simon Kennedy
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The U.K. manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index fell to a 20-month low of 52.1 in May from a downwardly revised 54.4 in April, due to weaker trends in both production and orders. The survey by Markit and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply found that the sharpest contraction in both production and new orders was in consumer goods, reflecting the weakness of the domestic market. "The UK PMI suggests that manufacturing has moved from rapid expansion to near-stagnation," said Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit. "On the plus side, job creation held up comparatively well in May, while inflation of input costs and factory gate prices moderated," he added.
