Italy December services PMI 50.7 vs 50.3 expected


  • Services PMI 50.7 vs. 50.3 expected and 49.2 previously.
  • Composite PMI 49.7 vs 47.7 previous.

Key findings:

  • Renewed, but only a marginal increase in service activity.
  • A milder decline in new jobs was signaled.
  • Cost and fee inflation is increasing.

Comment:

Commenting on the final PMI data, Jonas Feldhusen, junior economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank, said:

“Good news for Italian service providers at the end of the year. The HCOB Services PMI rose into bullish territory in December, partially offsetting the decline seen in November. The HCOB Composite PMI, a weighted average of the manufacturing and services index, improved overall but still points to stagnation due to weakness in the manufacturing sector. According to our HCOB Nowcasting model, Italy’s GDP growth is expected to stagnate in the fourth quarter.

Input prices for Italian service providers remain elevated according to the HCOB PMI survey. A range of costs are putting pressure on companies, with wages and energy being the most prominent drivers. The rise in input costs affects the prices of final products, which also rose in December. This indicates that at least part of the cost can be passed on to the end consumer. Overall, the rate of exit fee inflation was moderate.

Business activity in Italy’s service sector rose slightly in December. However, caution is advised in interpreting this, as the index pointed to a contraction in the previous month. The total number of new orders recorded a decline for the second month in a row in December, while orders from abroad showed a contraction trend for a longer period. Additionally, outstanding business has been declining for some time. This paints a bleak picture for the coming months. Future business expectations are below the annual average for 2024.

Italy Composite PMI



Source link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *