Ireland: Manufacturing PMI climbs in November
The Investec manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) climbed to 55.4 in November from 54.9 in October. The print thus moved further above the crucial 50-point threshold that separates expansion from contraction in manufacturing activity, signaling a notable acceleration in manufacturing activity. Business conditions have seen an improvement for over five years now.
A marked increase in demand from domestic and overseas markets led to a swifter pace of expansion in output and new orders. As well as boosting production, manufactures used inventories to satisfy the upturn in new orders. Firms hired more workers to meet the higher workloads, although the rate of staff in-take eased to a14-month low. On the price front, input prices rose at the sharpest rate in nine months thanks to higher costs for raw materials, including plastics and timber. Manufactures raised their output prices to pass the burden of cost adjustment onto consumers. Business sentiment became more upbeat in November, with an improved outlook on output.