Markit's Eurozone Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) was at 51.6 points in March this year, up from February’s 51.2 points and increasing compared to the earlier flash estimate of 51.4 points. However, this still represented the second-weakest improvement in manufacturing conditions for just over a year.
Rates of expansion in manufacturing production and new business ticked higher in March, recouping some of the momentum lost in the prior month. New export order growth slowed to a 14-month low.
Eurozone manufacturing employment increased for the nineteenth successive month in March. However, the rate of jobs growth was among the slowest registered during that sequence.
“Although the PMI ticked higher, March still saw the second-weakest improvement in manufacturing conditions seen for just over a year. The data suggest manufacturing grew by only around 0.2 percent in the first quarter, acting as a drag on the wider economy. Policymakers will also be worried by the further intensification of deflationary pressures in manufacturing supply chains, with prices charged at the factory gate falling at the steepest rate since late 2009. Discounting was widespread as firms competed on price amid weak demand” stated Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit.