Investors fled from the US stock market and the dollar after employment and manufacturing data signaled that US economic growth may be slowing more quickly than expected. Yields on benchmark 10-year US Treasury debt, the favorite asset of investors looking for a safe place to store cash when times get tough, fell below three percent for the first time since December. Gold, another safe haven, rose nearly one percent, while crude oil prices fell by up to one percent as well. “The sugar high that has buoyed the US economy over the past 6 months is wearing out, and there is little in economic growth or foundation to show for it. The US dollar has no choice but to weaken given exports are the only bright spot in the United States,” said managing director Faros Trading in Stamford Douglas Borthwick in Connecticut. Growth in the US manufacturing sector slowed sharply in May with the Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) index of national factory activity falling to 53.5 in May.
