France August final manufacturing PMI 46.0 vs 46.4 prelim

<ul><li>Prior 45.1</li></ul><p>It's a slight revision lower but at least the reading is better than July. That said, it still points to a contraction in France's manufacturing sector as new orders declined at an accelerated pace in August. HCOB notes that:</p><p>“France's manufacturing sector could now enter a recession in the third quarter. The intermediate goods sector is the main
drag on the industry, comfortably offsetting the marginal growth seen in the consumer goods segment. There are not many
signs that suggest an improvement in manufacturing lies ahead in the coming months.
</p><p>“Manufacturers are still having a tough time getting new orders. The HCOB PMIs for new orders overall and new orders from
abroad remain in deep contraction territory. The meagre order situation is affecting companies' expectations, as they are
becoming more pessimistic about the future.
</p><p>“The manufacturing industry's struggles are also evident in the jobs market. The HCOB employment PMI stands at its lowest
level since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with the pace of job cuts increasing from the previous month. The
pessimistic outlook of companies, caused by the poor order situation, plays a major role here.
</p><p>“There's a ray of sunshine on the price front. Input prices continued to fall sharply, with the companies surveyed reporting
falling raw material and energy prices. Companies in the intermediate goods sector in particular reported falling costs.
Output prices fell again, too, although at a much slower pace than input prices. Against the background of a historically high
inflation rate, this is encouraging news overall, so inflation can be expected to fall further.”</p>

This article was written by Justin Low at www.forexlive.com.