Economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector continued to contract in May as imports tumbled to their lowest level since 2009, reports Yahoo Finance.

The Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) manufacturing PMI for May was 48.5, down from April's reading of 48.7. Values above 50 indicate an expansion in activity, while readings below 50 signal contraction. The manufacturing sector has been in contraction for most of the past two years.

On the import side, the import index sank to a reading of 39.9, well below the 47.1 seen in April, caused in part by the trade tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. 

“Imports continue to contract as demand has reduced the need to maintain import levels from previous months, as well as due to the impact of tariff pricing,” said Susan Spence, chair of the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee, said in a release June 3. “The Production Index increased from an alarmingly low reading the previous month, but factory output continued to contract in May, indicating that panelists’ companies are still revising production plans downward amid economic uncertainty.”