Manufacturing activity contracted last month in the United States, the euro zone, China and Japan, although surveys of purchasing managers showed some bright spots in the United Kingdom and Southeast Asian economies, which grew.
Factory activity contracted for the ninth consecutive month in the United States, due to falling orders and rising input prices.
The euro zone Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) showed manufacturing activity re-entered contractionary territory last month, with the zone’s dominant German manufacturing sector seeing a marked deterioration in business conditions.
Weakening demand in the euro zone forced companies to cut jobs at the fastest pace in seven months, while in Germany – Europe’s largest economy – new orders fell at the fastest pace in 10 months.
“Current conditions remain moderate at best, with output trending downward from an already weak level, reflecting the combination of headwinds facing the manufacturing sector, including tariffs, increased Chinese competition and general economic uncertainty,” said Leo Barincou, senior economist at Oxford Economics.
In China, the world’s largest manufacturer, manufacturing activity again registered a slight contraction, a private sector PMI showed, a day after Beijing’s official measurement indicated that activity fell for the eighth consecutive month, although at a slower pace.
The Italian manufacturing sector grew again in November, a positive sign for its economy.
In the United Kingdom, outside the European Union, the manufacturing sector last month recorded its first increase in activity since September 2024, reinforced by improving domestic demand and a smaller slowdown in orders from abroad.
Meanwhile, other Asian manufacturing powers also struggled with sluggish demand in November, extending declines in factory activity as progress in U.S. trade negotiations failed to translate into a significant recovery in orders.
Japan’s PMI index showed new orders continued to decline, prolonging the recession to two and a half years.
South Korea’s factory activity contracted for the second straight month in November.
However, other data showed that Korean exports rose in November for the sixth consecutive month, beating market expectations, as chip sales hit a record thanks to strong demand for technology, while automobile sales also rose following the trade deal with the United States.
