The Institute for Supply Management’s factory index fell to 50.9 in July, the lowest reading in two years.

The index was 55.3 in June. A reading above 50 signals expansion, but the 50.9 reading was well below what economists had forecast.

Scott Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, said in a press release that the low reading is a clear sign the economy is weakening.

“The brief manufacturing recovery has stalled. This report gives us little reason to believe that the coming months will be any better,” he said.

The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 80 economists called for a decline of 54.5. The estimate ranged from 51 to 56.

“Businesses have cut back on orders and employment because they are just not seeing the demand that they expected,” said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in an interview with Bloomberg. “The economy is just not picking up momentum in the second half.”