(Reuters) - Mexico's manufacturing sector sentiment edged up in May, rising for a second month in a row off a five-month low, on improving new orders and employment even as output dipped amid a sluggish economic recovery.
The HSBC Mexico Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index ticked up to 51.9 in May, after adjusting for seasonal variation, from 51.8 in April. A reading above 50 signals expansion, while a lower reading points to contraction.
The index hit a five-month low in March, but it has pointed to expansion for eight months running after contracting last year. Output growth cooled but a reading of new orders expansion rose to its highest since February.
Mexico's economy grew only 0.3 percent in the first quarter compared to the previous period, hurt by an economic contraction in the United States.
"The return to more normal levels of production in the U.S. after the disruptive weather at the beginning of the year may support manufacturing production in Mexico," said Sergio Martin, chief economist at HSBC in Mexico.
Data last week showed the pace of Mexican factory export growth picked up in April. Most of Mexico's exports are manufactured goods, and nearly 80 percent of them are sent to the United States.
The PMI index, compiled by Markit, is composed of five sub-indices tracking changes in new orders, output, employment, suppliers' delivery times and stocks of raw materials and finished goods.
reuters.com
The HSBC Mexico Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index ticked up to 51.9 in May, after adjusting for seasonal variation, from 51.8 in April. A reading above 50 signals expansion, while a lower reading points to contraction.
The index hit a five-month low in March, but it has pointed to expansion for eight months running after contracting last year. Output growth cooled but a reading of new orders expansion rose to its highest since February.
Mexico's economy grew only 0.3 percent in the first quarter compared to the previous period, hurt by an economic contraction in the United States.
"The return to more normal levels of production in the U.S. after the disruptive weather at the beginning of the year may support manufacturing production in Mexico," said Sergio Martin, chief economist at HSBC in Mexico.
Data last week showed the pace of Mexican factory export growth picked up in April. Most of Mexico's exports are manufactured goods, and nearly 80 percent of them are sent to the United States.
The PMI index, compiled by Markit, is composed of five sub-indices tracking changes in new orders, output, employment, suppliers' delivery times and stocks of raw materials and finished goods.
reuters.com
No comments:
Post a Comment