This is the Commonwealth Bank / Markit Manufacturing PMI for August
The reports 'key findis':
- Growth of Australia's manufacturing sector was sustained during August, but at the slowest rate for a year.
- Output, new orders and employment all recorded their weakest gains in the past 12 months, with sectoral expansion undermined in part by a slight drop in new export orders: the first recorded by the survey to date.
- Business confidence, however, remained elevated, whilst input prices rose to a much lesser degree.
Commenting on the Commonwealth Bank Manufacturing PMI data, Michael Blythe, Chief Economist at the Commonwealth Bank, said:
- "The stepdown in PMI readings in August follows that in July and suggests some modest slowing in manufacturing activity in the September quarter. The slowing is connected in part with a step down in new export orders. And this pullback underlies recent RBA concerns that a stronger AUD is weighing on the outlook for domestic output and employment."
- "More disappointing, however, are the reports from some panellists that capacity constraints are holding back output. The backlog of work lifted again in August and delivery times lengthened. The reluctance of business to lift capex in recent years may limit our ability to fully benefit from an improving global economy and solid underlying domestic backdrop. So the latest data on capex is encouraging."
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At the bottom of the hour we'll get the 2nd of today's Australian manufacturing PMIs, the Australian Industry Group Performance of Manufacturing Index for August
- prior 56.0 for its 10th consecutive month in expansion
