Netherlands: PMI rises in December
In December, the manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), produced by NEVI and IHS Markit, rose to a three-month high of 57.2 from 56.1 in November. The index remained easily above the critical 50-point mark that separates expansion from contraction in the manufacturing sector.
The improvement in December came on the back of quicker growth in output, new orders and employment from the prior month. Purchasing activity also picked up, backlogs of work rose due to the pickup in new orders and raw material shortages, while delivery times continued to rise at a noticeable pace. In terms of prices, input price inflation remained elevated but nonetheless eased to a 16-month low. Output price inflation recorded a similar dynamic, staying high despite slowing to a 14-month low. Looking at 2019, although sentiment moderated somewhat manufacturers remained optimistic on output growth.
Commenting on the December result and 2018 as a whole, Trevor Balchin, director at IHS Markit, noted that “Dutch manufacturers continued to leave their eurozone peers behind in December. The differential with the euro PMI – based on flash data – widened to 5.8 points during the month, the second-largest on record […]. The Dutch PMI has trended 4.7 points above the eurozone PMI over 2018 as a whole, also the highest on record.”