ROME (dpa-AFX) - Italy's manufacturing sector contracted at a slower pace in June amid looser lockdown restrictions, survey data from IHS Markit showed Wednesday.
The factory Purchasing Managers' Index advanced to 47.5 in June from 45.4 in May. However, the score signaled a twenty-first successive deterioration in the health of the manufacturing sector.
The softer deterioration was driven by the first increase in output for nearly two years. At the same time, order book volumes were down as has been the case in each month since August 2018.
Reflecting weak sales, workforce numbers fell again, extending the current sequence of reduction to over a year.
Cost burden of Italian manufacturers fell for the fifth month in a row in June. Firms continued to discount their own goods to drive sales, with average selling prices declining again in June.
Finally, expectations with regards to output over the year ahead climbed to the highest since July 2015.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
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