Irish manufacturing boom is sustained with new records set in June

Operations have expanded rapidly despite severe ongoing supply chain delays

Employment in the manufacturing sector has risen every month since October 2020. Picture: iStock

Irish manufacturing continued to rebound strongly in June as more sectors of the economy reopened and restrictions were eased.

An AIB survey for June showed its manufacturing index, or PMI matched the record growth recorded in May.

Of the PMI's five component sub-indices, new orders and stocks of purchases both set new record highs in June. The output and employment indices were the second and third-highest on record and suppliers' delivery times the sixth-highest.

"Activity in the sector is clearly picking up strongly as economies re-open following the easing of Covid restrictions in Ireland and elsewhere over the second quarter of the year," AIB Chief Economist Oliver Mangan said.

On a quarterly basis, the PMI also set a new record high in the second quarter at 62.9, well above the previous record of 58.6 set in the fourth quarter of 1999. Any figure greater than 50 indicates overall improvement of the sector.

Manufacturers continued to expand purchasing operations in June to support rising workloads. The volume of inputs ordered increased at one of the fastest rates in the survey history, while stocks of purchases grew to an unprecedented degree. This occurred despite severe ongoing supply chain delays, with suppliers' delivery times continuing to lengthen markedly due to raw material shortages, customs checks on UK trade and global shipping problems including port congestion in Asia and container shortages.

"These factors, combined with strengthening demand, saw further strong upward pressure on both input and output prices, with rises becoming more broad-based," Mr Mangan said.

New business growth in the manufacturing sector accelerated for the third month running to a new survey record in June. Data again signalled surging domestic demand as more sectors of the economy saw restrictions loosened. New export orders rose strongly overall, but at a much slower rate than total new work and one that eased slightly since May's ten-month high.

Employment in the manufacturing sector has risen every month since October 2020.