Marginal rise in manufacturing index ‘should not be read as sign of recovery’

A SECOND consecutive marginal increase in one of the main manufacturing industry barometers has suggested a “bottoming out’ of the sector’s decline, but should not be read as a sign of recovery,” according to its compilers.

The monthly purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector – compiled by NCB Stockbrokers – measured 36.1 for April; still way below the neutral 50 mark, which indicates a healthy industry, but up from 35.1 in March; representing the second month in a row in which a slight rise was noted.

However, NCB has warned that this upward trend does not represent anything akin to an industry recovery – as the latest survey suggested job losses are continuing, purchasing activity is still declining sharply and though the pace of decline of new business eased, it still remained sharp.