Greece: PMI eases from multi-year high in March
The IHS Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) dropped to 55.0 points in March, falling from a multi-year high of 56.1 points in February and ending a five-month streak of rises. Nonetheless, the index remains comfortably above the critical 50-threshold that signals expansion in the manufacturing sector.
The moderation came on the back of slower rates of expansion in new orders, purchasing activity and output. Even so, client demand remained healthy, and foreign new orders continued to rise. Meanwhile, record-high business confidence drove robust employment growth, which expanded at the fastest clip in the history of the survey. On the price front, input price inflation eased slightly but remained elevated due to higher fuel and raw material costs, translating to higher average selling prices.
Alex Gill, Economist at IHS Markit, commented:
“Perhaps most encouraging was a record rise in employment. The latest figure adds to what has been a bumper first quarter for jobs growth, which will hopefully be reflected by a reduction in the official unemployment rate, which stood at 20.8% in December last year.”