Tastes Great! Less Fillin ... er ... Less Growth! More inflation!

Sorry, those darn Miller Lite ads from the 1970s intruded into my train of thought on the economy. But getting back to business, the latest ISM non-manufacturing index paints the same sorry picture as the ISM manufacturing index. In short, we're seeing less growth and more inflation. The scoop ...

* The overall index dropped to 52.4 in March from 54.3 a month earlier. How bad is 52.4? It's the lowest reading in almost four years!

* New orders dipped to a 7-month low of 53.8 from 54.8 in February. The employment index sank to 50.8 from 52.2. That leaves it at the lowest level since July 2004.

* At the same time, the prices paid index shot up to 63.3 from 53.8. That leaves this key inflation gauge at its highest level since August.