WASHINGTON/LONDON—Global factory output fell widely last month with U.S. manufacturing activity contracting for the first time in 2.5 years and the impact of China’s COVID-19 lockdowns weighing, although the downturn eased in Europe, surveys showed on Thursday.
There were also encouraging signs that inflation may have peaked, or be close to doing so, in many economies as global demand ebbs, although steep price rises and increased borrowing costs as central banks tighten policy aggressively have left indebted consumers feeling the pinch and forcing them to cut spending.
“Global consumers are reining back on spending on discretionary goods in a world of stagflation,” said Duncan Wrigley at Pantheon Macroeconomics….