The Cass Freight Index for industrial shipping fell back 8.6 percent in July, the first decline in six months and a signal that weakness in the broader U.S. economy is starting to diminish shipping demand.

The closely watched shipments index fell back to its lowest level since April, and the separate Cass index of shipping expenditures also fell on a month-to-month basis, slipping 4.5 percent in the first decline in spending since January.

Both measures grew on a year-over-year basis, although the annual comparisons still are coming to the period when the Freight Index and other economic measures were at historic lows.

The shipments index grew 8.9 percent in July over the same month a year ago and the expenditures index was up 22.9 percent over last summer, when fuel prices were in a trough.

The monthly Cass Freight Index is produced by Cass Information Systems, whose freight payment business provides a broad sample of U.S. industrial shipping activity.

Source: JOC