Manufacturing sector in Eurozone ends 2024 in reduction
(MENAFN) The downturn in the eurozone manufacturing sector worsened in December, with most of the key indexes ending the year in contraction, as reported on Thursday. The eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) dropped to 45.1 in December, marking its lowest level in three months and continuing its decline over the past two and a half years.
The report indicated a decline across several areas, including new orders, output, purchasing activity, and inventories of inputs. These decreases suggest that the manufacturing sector is facing ongoing challenges. Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank, commented that new orders had fallen even further than in the previous two months, undermining any expectations for a quick recovery. He also noted that the accelerated decline in order backlogs added to the bleak outlook.
De la Rubia pointed out that a potential sign of recovery would be when companies begin rebuilding their inventories of intermediate goods, but the data from December showed no such indication. Instead, inventories continued to be reduced at an accelerated pace, with businesses also depleting their finished goods inventories, anticipating weak demand in the near future.
However, there was a slight positive note as business confidence saw a modest improvement. Growth expectations for the upcoming months reached a four-month high, offering some hope for a potential rebound in the sector.
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