Global manufacturing shows signs of renewed vigour in Feb: S&P Global

The J.P.Morgan global manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI)–a composite index produced by J.P.Morgan and S&P Global in association with the Institute of Supply Management and the International Federation of Purchasing and Supply Management (IFPSM)–posted 50.3 in February, up from 50.0 in January, its first reading above the neutral 50 mark in 18 months.

Three of the five PMI sub-indices—new orders, output and stocks of purchases—signalled growth, S&P Global said in a release.

The outlook remained broadly positive overall, with optimism regarding the year ahead staying close to January's nine-month high.

Although the rate of expansion in output remained only mild in February, it was still the second-fastest during the past 20 months. All three of the sub-sectors covered by the survey saw output increase, S&P Global said in a release.

Consumer goods producers saw solid growth, whereas rates of expansion were marginal in both the intermediate and investment goods categories.

China, the United States, India and Brazil were among the nations that witnessed a rise in manufacturing output during the month, in contrast to declines in places like the euro area, Japan and the United Kingdom.

The increase in global manufacturing production was supported by growth in new business intakes and efforts to complete backlogs of work.

Total new orders rose for the first time in 20 months, albeit only marginally. Although the downturn in new export orders continued—international trade volumes have fallen throughout the past two years—the rate of decline eased to its weakest since June 2022.

Meanwhile, the cyclically sensitive ratio of new orders-to-stocks of finished goods edged up to its highest level since May 2022.

February data indicated that average supplier lead times were broadly unchanged over the month. However, the aggregate reading masked divergent trends beneath the surface.

Some nations, including Germany, the United States and Austria, saw marked improvements in vendor lead times. In contrast, the United Kingdom, France and Australia saw much longer times.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)