US business activity improves in May; inflation poised to accelerate sharply

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. business activity picked up in May amid a truce in the trade war between Washington and China, but President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs on imported goods raised prices for companies and consumers. The survey from S&P Global on Thursday hinted at an acceleration in inflation in the coming months and a labor market slowdown, a reminder that stagflation remained a risk for the economy despite steps by the Trump administration to de-escalate trade tensions with Beijing. Manufacturing delivery delays were the longest in 31 months while exports of services, including spending by foreign visitors in the U.S., dropped at the sharpest pace since the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in early 2020.