Amid more evidence of a housing slowdown, U.S. factory activity saw its weakest month of growth in over three years in October, while a broad pullback in price pressures emerged, a report Wednesday said, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Meanwhile, U.S. construction spending failed to rise for a fifth straight month in September, dragged down by a continued slide in home-building, and a leading index of U.S. home sales fell slightly in September, suggesting some leveling off of activity in the months ahead.

The latest data on manufacturing activity offered little support for the idea that the U.S. economy will rebound quickly from a slow third quarter.

The Institute for Supply Management, a purchasing managers’ trade group, said Wednesday that its manufacturing index fell to 51.2 in October, from 52.9 a month earlier. The new-orders component of the index, which offers a glimpse of potential manufacturing activity, fell to 52.1 from 54.2. Any number above 50 suggests expansion, but the October readings indicate that the manufacturing sector was losing momentum as it entered the current quarter.

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