It falls steeply the PMI index on Italian manufacturing. Last month the indicator calculated by Markit scored 43,8 points, against the 47,9 recorded in March, well below (and for the ninth time in a row) the threshold of 50 points which marks the boundary between expansion and contraction.
In the same period, too at European level, the PMI manufacturing index fell more than expected, to 45,9 points, from 47,7 in March. In this case it is the worst figure since June 2009. Economists' expectations were for a value of 46 points.
The new orders in Italy they showed the eleventh consecutive monthly drop, but this time the contraction is the most marked in the last three years, with the relative index down to 39,2, from 45,7 in March. Mainly due to falling domestic and foreign demand, the indicator plunged to its lowest level since March 2009.
The decline in new orders produced a negative impact on the employment side, so much so that the index relating to the workforce shows the heaviest reduction since January 2010. Production contracted at fastest pace since last December, but stocks recorded an increase for the second consecutive month.
