Sweden PMI stuck in range

The manufacturing PMI of Sweden rose just a tad in September, which was weaker than expected. The PMI stood at 53.3, up a mere 0.1 points from August. Thus, the PMI remains stuck within the past two year's range of 51.0-56.5.

The sub-indices for order intake and production remained largely unchanged at the decent levels of 54.5 and 55.0, notes Nordea Bank. The index for employment stands out with a rise to 55.5, the highest level since April 2011.

The rise in the index for employment is encouraging but should be taken with a pinch of salt as the overall picture for the manufacturing industry is mixed.

The PMI is weaker than the NIER's Tendency Survey, although the discrepancy should not be exaggerated. The overall picture is that the situation in manufacturing industry is improving but any marked recovery seems not to be around the corner, states Commerzbank.