Engine of recovery running low on steam

For the tenth month in a row the manufacturing sector continued to grow, but the engine of the Irish recovery looks to be running low on steam.

The NCB Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) found that firms continued to hire staff even as the rate of growth of the sector fell to its lowest in four months as the number of orders declined.

The NCB PMI found that the rate of growth had slipped to 51.4 in December from 52.4 a month earlier. The decline was put down to weak domestic demand and higher energy costs.