Fears of increasing protectionism pushed the Purchasing Managers Index lower to 48.9 in March from 49.6 in February. Industrial sentiment has been below 50, the level above which marks expansion, for over two years.

Services PMI, after beginning the year on a positive note, fell 6.2 points to 50.6 as it converges with industrial sentiment.

Protectionism apprehension over the next twelve months surfaced in February, and are now reported by over half of the firms in the survey.

The SVME (Schweizerischer Verband für Materialwirtschaft und Einkauf) Association for Purchasing and Supply Management's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) is produced in conjunction with Credit Suisse. The PMI provides an estimate of manufacturing business activity for the preceding month by using information obtained from a representative sector of purchasing managers. Results are synthesised into a single index which can range between zero and 100. A reading above (below) 50 signals rising (falling) activity versus the previous month and the closer to 100 (zero) the faster is activity growing (contracting).

The PMI is very sensitive to the business cycle and tends to match growth or decline in the economy as a whole. To construct the PMI the Swiss Association of Purchasing and Materials Management conducts monthly surveys of purchasing executives on their performance in the current month versus the previous period. Because the amount of materials ordered by purchasing managers parallels the level of manufacturing production, the PMI is a gauge of production growth. The results are indexed with a centerline of 50; values above 50 indicate expectations of expansion and values below 50 indicate expectations of contraction for the manufacturing sector.