April’s activity contraction was widespread across the manufacturing sector. Manufacturers of all sizes and serving all end-markets reported further slowing business activity. The spread in the average index reading between firms under 20 employees and those over 250 employees over the last two months was less than 1 point. During typical downturns large firms have more options available to them to cope with the pain of a downturn; however, the current situation has left little -- if any -- room for firms of any size to maneuver to relatively greater safety.
Read more
