May 2018 UK Markit/CIPS manufacturing PMI 1 June 2018

Markit says the PMI was up on the biggest build-up of finished goods in the history of the report

Markit notes;

  • Output growth ticks higher despite slower expansion of new work received
  • Supply-chain constraints and cost pressures intensify

On inflation;

UK manufacturers also faced rising cost inflation and supply-chain pressures during May. The rate of increase in average input prices accelerated for the first time since January, with companies reporting that general raw material cost increases were being exacerbated by shortages developingfor a number of inputs.

Markit’s Rob Dobson wasn’t overly impressed with the PMI despite the rise;

“At first glance, the mild acceleration in the rate of output growth and rise in the headline PMI would appear positive outcomes given the backdrop of the slowdown seen in manufacturing since the turn of the year. However, scratch beneath the surface and the rebound in the PMI from April’s 17-month low is far from convincing. A slowdown in new order inflows meant the expansion in production was achieved only by firms working through their backlogs of work. Weaker than expected sales meanwhile led to the largest rise in unsold stock in the survey’s 26-year history.This suggests that manufacturers have yet to fully adjust their production to the weakening trend in new business growth and there will need to be a rapid improvement in demand if output volumes are to be sustained in the coming months.”

GBPUSD has done pretty much nothing. It ran up about 18 pips to 1.3294 but is back down.

Ryan Littlestone

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