At 53.4, down from 54.7 in August, the seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Flash U.S. Composite PMI Output Index pointed to the weakest upturn in business activity since April 2017. The composite index is based on original survey data from the IHS Markit U.S. Services PMI and the IHS Markit U.S. Manufacturing PMI.

The overall moderation in output growth was driven by the service economy, which more than offset an accelerated rise in manufacturing production. Anecdotal evidence suggested that some of the slowdown in overall output growth reflected company shutdowns on the east coast ahead of hurricane Florence. These disruptions contributed to a solid increase in unfinished business during September. Backlogs of work were accumulated at the fastest pace for three months.