-- The euro area's manufacturing sector remained in expansion territory in April, bolstered by higher output levels and new orders as the ongoing crisis in the Middle East led to stockpiling.
The S&P Global Eurozone Manufacturing PMI reached a 47-month high of 52.2 in April, matching the flash estimate and rising from 51.6 in the previous month, according to final data published Monday.
Euro area factories logged an increase in production volumes, marking the strongest level of growth since August 2025. This was supported by growth in new orders, a further improvement in demand conditions, and higher sales on the back of front-loaded purchasing. Overseas demand for new orders also increased for the first month in just over four years.
"Although the PMI has risen to its highest for nearly four years, the survey is more a cause for alarm than celebration. Production and orders books are being buoyed by the building of safety stocks as a result of widespread concerns over supply shortages and rising prices emanating from the war in the Middle East," said S&P Global Market Intelligence Chief Business Economist Chris Williamson.
Business optimism about output growth over the next 12 months weakened further, falling to its lowest level since November 2024.
"Manufacturers' optimism about the year ahead has sunk to its gloomiest for nearly one-and-a-half years, the war having shattered the growing confidence that had been building earlier in the year," Williamson noted. "Producers are concerned not only that the war will dampen demand, building on existing headwinds such as US tariffs and the Ukraine war, but also that war-related supply shortages will curb production in the months ahead."
All eight eurozone countries covered by the survey reported growth in their manufacturing sectors, marking the first time all of their PMI readings stood above the neutral 50 threshold since June 2022. Ireland posted the strongest growth, while Germany, France, Italy, and Spain saw "modest" rates of increase.