They arrive the first, timid signs of recovery of European industry after the collapse triggered by the Covid-19 emergency and the consequent lockdowns. In June, the manufacturing PMIXNUMX-XNUMX business days it recovered to 47,4 points, 8 points more than the previous survey in May. The figure beat the expectations of analysts who were expecting a PMI of 46,9 points.
As far as individual Member States are concerned, according to Markit, the SME of the Italian manufacturing sector last month it stood at 47,5 points against 45,4 in May. The data "signals the twenty-first consecutive month of contraction in the health of the Italian manufacturing sector". Despite this, manufacturing production “increased for the first time in almost two years but with a rather slight rate of expansion. Demand conditions remained subdued, with new orders, which although at the weakest rate in four years, are declining again,” notes Markit. The prospects for the next 12 months are improving, returning "to the highest levels of optimism since July 2015".
Moving on to other countries: in Germany the PMI rose to 45,2 points from the previous 36,6 (the consensus was at 44,6%), in France the figure stood at 52,3 points (from 40,6), while in Spain it grew from 38,3 points in May to 49 points in June. Finally, the PMI index of Britain it is at 50,1 points, up from 40,7 in May and slightly in line with the preliminary estimate and the consensus of economists.
“June's final PMI still signals that manufacturing companies in the Eurozone are seeing a strong initial recovery, due to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions,” said IHS Markit's chief economist. Chris Williamson, adding that this increase "is indicative of a collapse in production at an annual rate of just 2%", lower than "the collapse of almost 30% reported during the peak of the restrictions in April".
"In Strong recovery also for the forecasts for the next twelve months, due to the hope that economic growth will continue its acceleration", continues the economist, pointing out however that "even with these increases, the levels of production and confidence remain at below pre-pandemic peaks, and continued weak demand combined with current social distancing will likely hold back the recovery.
