Eurozone PMI manufacturing dropped to 56.0 in April, down from 56.6, miss expectation of 56.1. Eurozone PMI services rose to 55.0, up from 54.9 and beat expectation of 54.6. PMI composite unchanged at 55.2.
Comments from Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at IHS Markit:
“The Eurozone economy remained stuck in a lower gear in April, with business activity expanding at a rate unchanged on March, which had in turn been the slowest since the start of 2017. Growth has downshifted markedly since the peak at the start of the year, but importantly still remains robust.
“The April data are running at a level broadly consistent with Eurozone GDP growth of approximately 0.6% at the start of the second quarter.
“The decline in the PMI from January’s high is neither surprising nor alarming: such strong growth as that seen at the start of the year rarely persists for long, not least because supply fails to keep up with demand. With recent months seeing record delivery delays for inputs to factories and growing skill shortages, output is clearly being constrained. In France, strikes were also reported to have disrupted growth, and may continue to do so in coming months
“However, it’s also clear that underlying demand has weakened, in part due to exports being hit by the stronger euro. With companies’ future optimism having slipped to the lowest since last year, it looks likely that growth may well slow further in coming months.”
