(Reuters) – Eurozone manufacturing contracted in April, but less than initially estimated, as raw material costs fell at their fastest pace in nearly three years, according to data. final results of the survey of purchasing managers released Tuesday by S&P Global.
The sector index came out at 45.8, against 47.3 a month earlier and 45.5 for the first estimate.
An index measuring production, which feeds into a composite PMI scheduled for Wednesday and is seen as a good guide to economic health, fell to 48.5 from 50.4.
“Manufacturers’ production fell in France and Italy, while it remained relatively stable compared to March in Germany and Spain,” commented Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank.
The fall in input costs was the fastest since May 2020. The producer price index fell from 53.4 to 51.6, its lowest level in 29 months.
“However, this positive trend in industrial prices alone cannot reassure the European Central Bank on the evolution of inflation, especially since the flash PMI data on services and those published in March by Eurostat have underlined the maintenance of strong inflationary pressures in this sector”, added Cyrus de la Rubia.
SEE AS WELL:
France/PMI-The contraction of the manufacturing sector continues
Germany/PMI-Accelerating contraction in industry
(Jonathan Cable, Laetitia Volga, edited by Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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