Trump promised to bring back the factories, but the manufacturing sector just suffered its first contraction in a decade.
U.S. manufacturer growth slowed to the lowest level in almost 10 years in August, the latest sign that the trade war may be exacerbating the economic slowdown.
The U.S. manufacturing PMI (purchasing managers’ index) was 49.9 in August, down from 50.4 in July and below the neutral 50.0 threshold for the first time since September 2009, according to IHS Markit.
Any reading below 50 signals a contraction. The survey is an initial reading for the month of August. The final figure will be released Sept. 3.
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But this new survey showed new orders received by manufacturers dropped the most in 10 years, while the data also showed export sales tanked to the lowest level since August 2009.
Trump makes the false claim at nearly every one of his rallies that he has brought manufacturing back. The truth is that the latest numbers show manufacturing data at Great Recession levels. The factories aren’t coming back, just like Trump hasn’t brought the coal mines back. Trump’s tariffs have not only weakened the economy, but they’ve caused series damage to the auto industry and others.
The data shows that the US economy is weakening, but Trump has proclaimed himself the chosen one on the trade war, so he is never going to see reality and make a deal with China.
Trump is sending the US economy into a recession, and he is not going to stop until voters remove him from office.
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