Manufacturing growth picks up in November, new orders rise, survey shows

Greek manufacturing growth picked up in November on the back of sharper expansions in production and new orders, leading firms to add staff at a faster pace, a survey showed on Monday.

Markit's Purchasing Managers' Index for manufacturing, which accounts for about 10 percent of the Greek economy, rose to 54.1 in November from 53.5 in October, marking the quickest improvement in the health of the sector in three months.

Foreign client demand strengthened as the rate of new export order growth accelerated to a six-month high. Readings above the 50.0 mark indicate growth in activity. 

"Stronger domestic and foreign client demand supported a quicker improvement of the Greek manufacturing sector in November," said Sian Jones, IHS Markit economist.

"Production growth was reportedly driven by the acquisition of new clients and greater new order volumes as Greece remained a bright spot in the euro zone manufacturing economy."

Encouraged by the strength in new orders, firms renewed increases in factory gate prices, with the rate of inflation the fastest in over a year, attributed to a partial pass-through of higher input costs.

[Reuters]