Austria's manufacturing activity slipped into the contraction territory in December as the renewed fall in new orders weighed on production growth, survey data from S&P Global showed on Monday.
The UniCredit Bank Austria manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 49.3 in December from 50.4 in November. A score below 50.0 indicates contraction.
Although the index fell below the neutral 50.0 mark indicating contraction, the score was the second-highest since mid-2022.
The decline was driven by a renewed fall in new orders, marking the biggest fall in three months. Export sales also returned to contraction.
Production growth eased to the weakest in the current three-month sequence of expansion. Further, manufacturers remained optimistic about production for the next twelve months.
The survey showed that employment declined for 32 consecutive months. The rate of job shedding was the weakest since May 2023.
Companies scaled back their purchasing activity in December. Inventories of raw materials declined, while stocks of finished goods grew the most in seven months.
Regarding prices, data showed that input cost inflation slowed further as competition among suppliers damped cost pressures. In turn, manufacturers reduced their own prices for the eighth straight month.
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