- Markit
The Euro zone manufacturing activity rose more than expected in March, suggesting that fragile recovery remained on track despite a weaker demand from China and other developing economies. The Euro zone's manufacturing PMI climbed to 51.6 last month, up from 51.2 reported in February. However, prices for factory made goods dropped, Markit reported, plunging in March at the steepest pace since 2009 as companies lower prices in response to weak demand for their products. The slide in prices underscores challenges the ECB still faces in meeting its goal of bringing consumer-price inflation in the Euro zone back up to just under 2%. Consumer prices in the 19-nation bloc dropped on the year in March, albeit at a slower pace than in the preceding month. Annual inflation came in at minus 0.1% in March, compared with minus 0.2% in February.
While manufacturing activity surprisingly accelerated in the Euro zone's number one economy, in France manufacturing arena cooled in March and ended its six-month period of growth. Germany's final manufacturing PMI rose to 50.7 during last month, up from 50.5 seen in February. At the same time the French manufacturing PMI slid to 49.6 in March, down from 50.2 seen in February and marking the lowest since August last year.
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