Euro area August final manufacturing PMIs

The euro area final manufacturing PMI headline was revised down slightly to 52.3 (-0.1 points), mainly due to the employment index. Nonetheless, business confidence in August was broadly unchanged from July, continuing to show remarkable resilience since March 2015. However, an early divergence from the EC survey shows 0.8 points fall in August, notes Barclays.

German PMIs have been revised up 1 tenth to 53.3, confirming the "flash" uptick, while the drop in France was eventually larger (revised down 0.3 points to 48.3). In Germany, upside revisions in output and new orders to 55.1 and 54.3, the highest levels since spring 2014, more than offset a downward revision in employment. Over the month, German PMIs made a remarkable gain in a challenging international environment, notably related to China. 

The 3.4 points gain in export new orders to 52.8 was confirmed. It will be crucial to monitor whether Germany can sustain these levels of confidence. Meanwhile, output and new orders in France led the headline downward revision, while the INSEE surveys painted a more positive picture, adds Barclays.