ISM index shows slight cooling of factory sector

0 Comments | AFP, December, 2005

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The US factory sector cooled slightly in November but activity remained robust, the Institute for Supply Management said.

The ISM manufacturing index dipped to 58.1 percent from 59.1 percent in October.

But the figure was slightly better than the 58.0 percent expected on Wall Street, and well ahead of the 50 percent level that separates growth and contraction.

"This level is consistent with solid manufacturing activity in November," said Marie-Pierre Ripert, economist at IXIS Corporate and Investment Bank.

The ISM industrial index, previously known as the purchasing managers index, has now been above the 50-point mark that divides expansion from contraction for 30 consecutive months.

"While energy costs and supply...