Eurozone manufacturing PMI rises to 47.3 in November

A flash reading of S&P Global's Eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers' index increased to 47.3 in November from 46.4 in October, above market forecasts for a reading of 46.

The flash reading pointed to a fifth straight monthly drop in factory activity, with the rate of production decline easing but still sitting at the second-higher level recorded over the ten years, excluding the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

S&P Global stated the steepest downturn was seen in chemical and plastics, with notably steep declines also recorded in basic resources, while new orders declined at a smaller rate, backlogs of work continued to fall and payroll growth also remained subdued.

Meanwhile, input prices rose at the slowest clip since December 2020 amid an improving supply situation as demand weakened and selling price inflation eased.

Elsewhere, a flash reading of the Eurozone composite purchasing managers' index rose to 47.8 in November 2022, up from October's 47.3 reading and above market expectations of 47.

The latest reading pointed to a fifth straight monthly drop in business activity levels, albeit at a decelerated rate, while service sector output also fell, down for a fourth consecutive month.

Overall new orders fell for the fifth month in a row, at the second-fastest pace in the past two years, while backlogs of work declined more than they had in two years and the pace of job creation was the weakest since March 2021.

On the price front, input cost inflation cooled to its lowest since September 2021, but remained elevated by historical standards, while selling price inflation eased to a three-month low.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com