Euro Area Manufacturing Growth Falls; French Unemployment Falls

Arthi Gupta
01 Jun, 2011
New York City

Manufacturing sector growth declined in the euro area with the growth in Germany slumping to a seven-month low in May. Swiss retail turnover growth accelerated in April. French unemployment fell in the first quarter.

[R]2:00 PM Frankfurt – Manufacturing sector growth declined in the euro area with the growth in Germany slumping to a seven-month low in May. Swiss retail turnover growth accelerated in April. French unemployment fell in the first quarter.[/R]

Euro-zone Manufacturing Growth Slumps

Euro-zone manufacturing growth fell sharply to a seven-month low in May, survey data from Markit Economics showed today.

The final Markit Purchasing Managers'' Index dropped to 54.6 in May from 58 in April and stayed below the flash estimate of 54.8. The latest decline was the largest since November 2008.

German Factory Growth Drops

German manufacturing sector expanded at the slowest pace in seven months in May, data released by Markit Economics showed. Slower output and new order growth were the main reasons for the reduction in the headline PMI in the latest survey period, Markit said.

The final seasonally adjusted Markit/BME Purchasing Managers'' Index fell to 57.7 in May from 62 in April. The score was below the flash estimate of 58.2.

French Manufacturing Activity Growth Slows

The French manufacturing sector expanded at a slower pace in May, a survey by Markit Economics showed on Wednesday.

The headline Markit/CDAF purchasing managers’ index declined to 54.9 in May from 57.5 in April.

Greek Factory Activity Contracts

Greece''s manufacturing sector contracted at a faster pace in May, data from a survey conducted by Markit Economics showed on Wednesday.

Greece has been battling with shrinking economy, falling bank loans and shrinking tax receipts. Also, bank withdrawals accelerated in the last five weeks according to several private bank executives.

The headline Markit purchasing managers'' index dropped to 44.5 in May from 46.8 in April. The latest decline was the fastest in three months.

Italy Manufacturing PMI Eases

Italy''s manufacturing sector growth slowed to a six-month low in May, Markit Economics said.

The Markit/ADACI Purchasing Managers'' Index fell to 52.8 in May from 55.5 in April. The overall decline in the index was driven by weaker trends for output, new business and delivery times.

Spanish Manufacturing Activity Declines

Spanish manufacturing sector contracted for the first time in eight months in May, survey results from Markit Economics showed on Wednesday.

The seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers'' Index dropped to 48.2 in May from 50.6 in April.

Spain is also scheduled to place 3.5 billion euros of bonds tomorrow.

Swiss Retail Turnover Growth Accelerates

Switzerland''s retail turnover grew at a pace of 0.7% on a monthly basis in April from 0.4% in March, the Federal Statistics Office said on Wednesday. Excluding fuel, retail sales growth remained unchanged at 0.8%.

Retail sales of food, beverages and tobacco registered an increase in real turnover of 8.5% annually and the non-food sector sales grew 6.8%.

Danish Retail Sales Rise

Denmark''s retail sales increased for a second straight month in April, data released by Statistics Denmark showed.

Seasonally adjusted retail sales rose 0.9% on a monthly basis in April, after a 0.2% gain in March, which was revised up from a similar size decline. The latest increase is the biggest in more than three years, apart from the sharp seasonal fluctuations around last year''s Easter, the agency said.

French Unemployment Falls

The jobless rate in metropolitan France fell to 9.2% or 2.6 million in the first quarter, the statistics office Insee said today. The unemployment rate decreased from 9.3% in the fourth quarter of 2010.

The jobless rate for men remained unchanged at 8.6%, while that for women dipped to 9.9% from 10%.