Manufacturing contracts again in March – PMI
The manufacturing sector contracted in March after briefly returning to growth a month earlier, a survey showed today, with confidence among firms also slumping to the lowest level in more than three years.
The AIB S&P Global manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell back below the 50 mark denoting growth to 49.6, compared with 52.2 in February – the fastest pace of growth since mid-2022.
The index has sat below 50 for most of the last 17 months.
Both output and new orders contracted in March. The survey’s authors said producers mostly cited subdued demand from clients in the UK, alongside challenging global economic conditions.
The rate of input price inflation also accelerated for the second successive month after firms passed on higher transport costs, wages and rising commodity prices.
The Irish domestic economy expanded by just 0.5% last year, far below expectations and the rapid post-pandemic growth of the previous 12 months.
The Central Bank forecast last month that the domestic economy would grow by 2.2% this year.
Article Source – Manufacturing contracts again in March – PMI – RTE
