Manufacturing activity in the eurozone continued to contract in December, according to private survey data. By the end of the month, the eurozone’s industrial sector entered a deeper recession: production volumes fell for the first time in ten months amid a continued decline in new orders. The decline in activity was widespread and affected most eurozone countries.
The HCOB Eurozone Manufacturing PMI, calculated by S&P Global, fell to 48.8 points in December from 49.6 points in November. This was the lowest reading in nine months and the second month in a row below the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction. According to survey results, contraction was recorded in most of the 20 countries in the currency union.
Germany, the eurozone’s largest economy, showed the weakest results, with its PMI falling to a ten-month low. Italy and Spain also returned to contraction. France was a rare positive exception: its industrial index rose to a 42-month high. Outside the eurozone, manufacturing activity in the UK accelerated to its fastest pace in 15 months in December.