Manufacturing shows strong growth

IRELAND’s manufacturing sector grew strongly last month — with the fastest increase in new business orders in more than 11 years; the sharpest rate of job creation for nearly five years and actual production increasing at its fastest pace in 13 years.

The latest monthly manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI), from NCB, rose for the fifth month in February — up from 55.8 points to 56.7 points, with anything over the neutral 50 point mark representing industry growth — but, crucially, marked the strongest increase in a single month since January, 2000.

“Manufacturing production increased at the third-fastest pace in the history of the survey, which began in May 1998.