Markit's Eurozone Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) was at 52.5 points in June this year, up from May's 52.2 points and remaining stable compared to the earlier flash estimate of 52.5 points, rising to its highest reading since April 2014.
June's data signalled the joint-fastest growth of eurozone manufacturing production in all nations except Greece. Companies benefitted from improved inflows of new work from both domestic and export clients. The level of new export business rose again in June. Jobs growth was registered in the eurozone manufacturing sector for the tenth consecutive month in June. Moreover, the rate of increase accelerated to its second-highest in almost four years, as companies responded to rising new order inflows and a moderate accumulation of backlogs of work.
“A final PMI data for June rounded off euro area manufacturers’ best quarter for a year, representing a major improvement compared to the malaise seen at the end of last year. But Greece remained the outlier, suffering the steepest drop in manufacturing output for two years as orders continued to collapse in a month of fraught discussions seeking to stave off default,” Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit, said.