Production and employment increase despite static manufacturing growth

WHILE growth in Ireland’s manufacturing industries remained largely static last month, increases in production, new business orders and employment numbers were reported by companies.

The latest monthly NCB Purchasing Managers’ Index for November, which was published yesterday, was level on a rolling month-by-month basis at 52.3 points (that figure marked a five-month low in October). On a positive note, the index has stayed above the neutral 50-point mark for 51 months.

“Growth in manufacturing activity in November held at the same moderate pace as in October. Output growth accelerated a little but there was some slacking in the rate of growth in new orders, especially from abroad. However, employment gains continued — at a marginally slower rate than in October but more buoyantly than the average in earlier months,” according to NCB Stockbrokers chief economist Dermot O’Brien.

November was the fourth month in a row where an increase in staffing levels at Irish manufacturing companies was witnessed — mainly on the back of a rising number of new business orders. However, the actual rate of job growth eased marginally from October’s eight-month high.

Manufacturers also faced a significant rise in input costs last month (input prices also rose at the sharpest rate for some nine months) amid reports of higher prices for oil and raw materials.

In addition, greater production requirements and a higher volume of new orders contributed to November becoming the 27th successive monthly increase in purchasing activity amongst companies. The rate of production growth also accelerated last month, following on from an 11-month low in October.

Meanwhile, growth in the manufacturing sector in Britain was far more marked with the equivalent index there — also released yesterday — showing a reading of 54.4 for November. This was up from 52.8 in October and analysts there had suggested a fall to 52.5 may have been on the cards.