The U.S. manufacturing sector shrank in June for the first time since July 2009, fresh evidence of the faltering economic recovery, a leading industry survey showed on Monday.

The U.S. Institute of Supply Management (ISM) manufacturing index, also known as the purchasing managers index (PMI), stood at 49.7 percent, down from 53.5 percent in May.

A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing sector is generally expanding, while an estimate below 50 indicates that the manufacturing sector is shrinking.

Of the 18 U.S. manufacturing industries, only seven reported growth last month, including furniture and related products, electrical equipment and machinery, said the ISM. Nine industries including paper products and chemical products reported contraction.

Factories have been an important source of hiring and growth since the recession ended in the summer of 2009, but the U.S. economy has lost some steam in recent months.

The U.S. Commerce Department left U.S. annual economic growth unchanged at 1.9 percent for the first quarter of 2012 in its final estimate released on Thursday, a deceleration from the 3-percent growth in the final quarter of last year.