Key gauges of activity at European and Asian factories remained under pressure in May from China’s economic slowdown and the fallout from the war in Ukraine. New orders in the euro area fell for the first time since June 2020, with overall output growth picking up marginally, but still staying “sluggish,” according to S&P Global’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index. That trend was also on display in Germany and France, the region’s two biggest economies. The euro zone is facing the threat of stagflation because of the war on its doorstep. The manufacturing sector’s deterioration has also been “exacerbated by demand shifting to services, as consumers boost their spending on activities such as tourism and recreation,” according to S&P Global’s Chris Williamson. In Asia, Taiwan’s manufacturing PMI fell to the level 50 point level […]