Ireland: Manufacturing PMI logs sharpest monthly fall on record in April
The AIB manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) plunged to 36.0 in April from 45.1 in the previous month, marking the worst print since March 2009 and the sharpest monthly fall on record. As such, the reading fell further below the 50-threshold that indicates a deterioration in manufacturing business conditions compared with the previous month.
April’s marked downturn came against a worsening economic backdrop due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with significant declines in new orders, output and employment. Both new orders and manufacturing production contracted at the fastest rate in at least over two decades as domestic and lockdowns abroad collapsed demand. Moreover, firms’ rate of job shedding hit an over decade high. On the price front, input prices fell at the quickest pace in over four years amid plunging global oil prices a weaker demand for inputs, while output charges declined as the fastest rate since August 2019. Lastly, firms’ outlook for they year ahead deteriorated further in April as they projected that the Covid-19 pandemic would lead to recession.