Rise in jobs as factory sector on the up

Conditions in the manufacturing sector improved for the ninth month in a row with an increase in employment and new orders during November, according to the NCB Purchasing Managers’ Index.

“Business conditions continued to improve in the Irish manufacturing sector during November, though there were slower rises in output and new orders.

“Firms raised both employment and purchasing activity in response to greater workloads. However, companies had to use price discounting to support growth of new business as demand remained fragile,” said NCB.

The index reached 52.4 last month, which was a marginal increase from the 52.1 seen in October.

The respondents to the survey said there was a modest increase in exports in November. The export sector has benefited from the vast improvement in competitiveness over the past few years. However, the domestic economy remains extremely sluggish.

“According to respondents, slower growth of new business enabled manufacturers to work through outstanding business,” said NCB.

In what will be good news for the Government, the respondents to the survey reported a rise in staffing levels for the ninth month running. Moreover, the pace of job creation accelerated since October, with 19% of firms recording rise in staff numbers and just 11% posting a fall in employment.

Output prices fell in last month even though input costs rose sharply. Output prices rose over September and October. Higher costs for energy and transportation were attributed to the higher input costs.

“Purchasing activity at Irish manufacturing firms increased for the first time in four months during November, albeit only modestly. Panellists reported that higher new orders had been behind growth of input buying.

“Consumer goods producers posted the fastest rise in purchasing activity, while investment goods firms recorded a fall.”