Japan preliminary manufacturing PMI for November 48.8 (prior 48.2)

Japan preliminary manufacturing PMI for November 48.8, contracted for a fifth month

• prior 48.2

Some of sub-indexes:

• factory output showed improvement, climbing to a four-month high, suggesting that the business environment for manufacturers is edging towards stabilisation
• new orders continued to decline, though at a slower rate than in October, reflecting subdued domestic and global demand
• overseas demand remained particularly weak, with new export orders falling at the fastest pace in three months.

Services 53.1

• prior 53.1
• new businesses in the service sector grew at a faster pace, driven by solid domestic demand

Composite 52.0, eighth straight month of expansion

• prior 51.5

The report from S&P Global Market Intelligence highlights:

• “inflation remains a key concern”
• inflationary pressures intensified with input costs rising at the fastest pace in six months on a composite basis, largely attributed to higher labour and raw material costs
• firms raised their selling prices to secure profit margins, although the pace of output inflation slowed from October.
• “business confidence regarding future output improved to the highest level since January”
• strongest employment growth since June

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.