Eurozone March Manufacturing PMI rises to 51.6, reaching a 45-month high

LootboxPhobia · 2026-04-01T08:25:31+00:00

Eurozone manufacturing expanded in March, with the PMI rising to 51.6, the highest since 2022. New orders continued to grow, factory output and backlogs improved, but supply chain disruptions and rising prices intensified. Meanwhile, business confidence fell to a five-month low, despite an optimistic outlook for the future.

LootboxPhobia

2026-04-01 08:25:31

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Investing.com – The euro zone’s manufacturing sector expanded in March. S&P Global’s euro zone manufacturing PMI rose from 50.8 in February to 51.6, the highest level since mid-2022, data showed on Wednesday.

The manufacturing output index reached 52.0 in March, up from 51.9 in February, and hit a seven-month high. Factory output increased for the third consecutive month, driven by continued growth in new orders, with the rate of expansion matching the record set in February of the past 46 months.

Export demand stabilized during the month, ending an eight-month contraction trend. Backlogs of orders increased for the first time in nearly four years.

Supply chain disruptions worsened in March. The war in the Middle East affected global logistics. Supplier delivery times lengthened to the greatest extent since more than three and a half years ago. Euro zone manufacturers raised procurement activity for the first time since June 2022.

Input prices rose at the fastest pace since October 2022, reaching a 41-month high. As companies passed on higher costs, factory gate prices rose at their fastest rate in more than three years.

Among the eight countries surveyed, Greece had the highest manufacturing PMI reading, followed by Ireland. Germany and Italy recorded the strongest readings since 46 months and 37 months, respectively. France’s manufacturing sector stalled, while Spain was the only country in contraction territory.

Employment in the sector fell at an accelerated pace in March. The declines in both purchasing inventories and finished goods inventories were even more pronounced during the month.

Business confidence deteriorated to a five-month low, even as manufacturers remained optimistic about growth over the next 12 months. Optimism fell to below the long-term average.

The data collection period was March 12 to 24, 2026, covering around 3,000 private-sector companies in the euro zone.

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