Taiwan: Manufacturing PMI falls further in August
The S&P Global Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) declined from 44.6 in July to 42.7 in August. As a result, the index pointed to a sharper deterioration in business conditions from the previous month, and marked the lowest reading since May 2020.
The fall in the index was mainly driven by the fastest declines in output and new orders in over two years, on the back of softer demand at home and abroad. Moreover, purchasing activity and inventories fell sharply amid deteriorating sentiment. More positively, input and output prices declined for the first time in over two years due to lower raw material prices.
Annabel Fiddes, economics associate director at S&P Global, said:
“The data overall suggest a sector that is facing severe headwinds for it to be able to expand again. Notably, the lack of new work drove the steepest fall in backlogs for over 13-and-a-half years, and if new order intakes fail to pick up firms will likely have to cut back further on output and reduce staff numbers in the month ahead.”