Milwaukee area economy cooled in May

The Milwaukee area economy slowed down some in May, according to the Business Survey of the Institute For Supply Management-Milwaukee.
The Milwaukee Index dropped six points to 62 in May. New Orders Received went down 13 points. Production declined eight points to 73. Backlog was down 13 points to 55. Supplier Lead Times improved two points to 29. Blue Collar employment went up two points to 71. White Collar Employment increased five points to 66. Inventory Levels went down six points to 58. Capital Equipment Expenditures are off fie points to stand at 64.
The Prices Paid Index went down eight points this month. Only three increased price, three did not change and 15 dropped in price. However, 19 are above 50 and two at 50. Precious Metal dropped 14 points. Piping and Tubing are down 22 points. Copper and Stampings went down 21. Aluminum is down 15 points. Forgings increased two points.