PMI reaches new nine-month high
Greece’s Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for manufacturing climbed to 54.2 points in February – a nine-month high – from 53.7 points in January, according to figures released by IHS Markit on Friday. Business confidence in the sector reached a six-month high, as companies drew optimism from the fact that demand from foreign markets has grown, with an increase in new clients.
The IHS Markit analysis showed that February witnessed the second highest monthly output growth in the last 12 months, attributed to the increase in new orders and efforts to renew stocks of ready products. The growth rate of new orders was the biggest in the last 12 months, while the creation of new jobs continues.
The increase in new business led enterprises to increasing their outflow prices in February: This was only the second hike in the last five months, but was very small, according to the survey.
IHS Markit economist Sian Jones commented that “the acquisition of new clients and expectations of further export growth reportedly drove business confidence, which rose to a six-month high. Encouragingly, firms expect output to rise over the coming months despite uncertainty over upcoming elections.”
