Manufacturing production up over 6% as multinationals recover

The latest AIB purchasing managers index for the manufacturing sector in Ireland showed a sharp drop in activity during June

The increases were driven by the multinational dominated 'Modern sector'. 

Production in manufacturing industries increased by 6.2% between April and June compared to the previous three months as multinational sectors continued to recover, new data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows.

Statistician with the CSO Colin Cotter said the increases were driven by “differences in performance between the highly globalised Modern sector and the Traditional sector”.

The “Modern sector” includes the manufacturing of chemicals, pharmaceuticals, computers, and electronics. Numerous multinational pharmaceutical companies have large operations here in Ireland.

The “Traditional sector” on the other hand accounts for all other manufacturing sectors.

According to the data, production in the “Modern sector” increased by 3.7% between April and June compared to the first three months of the year. Between January and March, this dropped by 13.2% compared to the end of the year.

In the “Traditional sector”, it increased by 2.2% during the last quarter but it did not have a steep fall-off during the start of the year.

However, while production across the board may be up quarter-on-quarter it is still lagging behind last year. Compared to the same period in 2023, production in manufacturing industries is 10.1% lower.

The “Modern sector” experienced an annual decrease of 13.6% in production. In contrast, annual production in the “Traditional sector” grew by 11.1% during the same period.

Production in manufacturing industries up 6.2% in the three months to June 2024https://t.co/HPV2z0sm3h#CSOIreland #Ireland #IrishBusiness #BusinessStatistics #IndustrialProduction #Manufacturing #IndustrialTurnover #Business #BusinessNews pic.twitter.com/ROnt5chVKv

— Central Statistics Office Ireland (@CSOIreland) August 9, 2024

The latest AIB purchasing managers index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector in Ireland showed a sharp drop in manufacturing activity during June recording the most severe contraction in almost a year.

Businesses in the sector reported a drop in new orders and production as the impact of inflation continues to bite. The PMI shows a reading of 47.4 in June, down from 49.8 in May. Anything below 50 indicates a contraction in activity.

The reading for June means the health of the Irish manufacturing sector worsened for the fourth straight month and at an accelerated pace.