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Slowdown in service industries may be sign economy is cooling

By Alex Kowalski and Lorraine Woellert

 |  Bloomberg News  

  May 04, 2012

Service industries in the U.S. expanded less than projected and consumer confidence weakened, signaling the world’s largest economy may be cooling. The Institute for Supply Management said today its non- manufacturing index fell to a four-month low of 53.5 in April from 56 in March. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was 55.3. A reading above 50 in the Tempe, Arizona-based group’s gauge signals expansion. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index fell to a two-month low last week.

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