Manufacturing activity performs slightly above the flash and the consensus in April. At 49.0, the final PMI is some 0.3 point above the flash estimate. Still, this suggests that the reading is below the 50-expansion threshold and contracting. Despite this, the manufacturing output for March is 51.5 up from 50.5 in March, suggesting accelerated growth and recovery in output. This puts the output at record 37-month high.

The best-performing countries were Greece (53.2) and Ireland (53.0), where growth was at least positive. Italy (49.3), the Netherlands (49.2), France (48.7), Germany (48.4), Spain (48.1), and Austria (46.6) all saw contractions.

Factory output for the Eurozone shows steady signs of recovery as production increases for the second consecutive month. As demand stabilises, factory job loss slowed down slightly despite its continued downward trend. Input prices fell for the first time since November 2024 however, prices charged increased significantly. Business optimism continued to decline in April.

Today's update puts the Eurozone RPI at minus 11 and the RPI-P at minus 13. Overall, economic activity in general is falling short of market expectations.

The consensus sees no revision from the flash at 48.7.

The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) provides an estimate of manufacturing business activity for the preceding month by using information obtained from a representative sector survey incorporating around 3,000 companies. 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). Released by S&P Global, national data are included for Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Austria, the Republic of Ireland and Greece. These countries together account for an estimated 89 percent of Eurozone manufacturing activity.

Investors need to keep their fingers on the pulse of the economy because it dictates how various types of investments will perform. By tracking economic data such as the ISM manufacturing index in the U.S. and the S&P Global PMIs elsewhere, investors will know what the economic backdrop is for the various markets. The stock market likes to see healthy economic growth because that translates to higher corporate profits. The bond market prefers less rapid growth and is extremely sensitive to whether the economy is growing too quickly and causing potential inflationary pressures.

The S&P Global PMI manufacturing data give a detailed look at the manufacturing sector, how busy it is and where things are headed. Since the manufacturing sector is a major source of cyclical variability in the economy, this report has a big influence on the markets. And its sub-indexes provide a picture of orders, output, employment and prices.