France PMI Manufacturing was finalized at 57.5 in August, down slightly from July’s 58.0. Markit said growth momentum eased as supply chain issues persisted. New orders rose at softest rate since January. Business confidence slides amid concerns about cost inflation.
Joe Hayes, Senior Economist at IHS Markit, said:
“Economic conditions in France’s manufacturing sector remain strong as we head towards the end of the third quarter, although further slowdowns in the rate of output and new order growth suggest we’re well past the peak.
“Given the immense supply-side challenges being thrown at goods producers too, we can hardly be surprised to see production growth slowing, although during this time we’ve also seen backlogs of work accumulate at some pretty hefty rates. It’s likely that firms have sufficient work in the wings to keep producing at a decent rate. They’re certainly gearing for it, as employment growth is strong and accelerated in August, and purchasing activity continues to rise.
“Fears are however starting to mount as to when the material shortages, delivery delays and intense price pressures will take their toll. Surveyed businesses cited all of these as threats to the outlook and business confidence subsequently slipped to a nine-month low.”
