PARIS, July 1 (Reuters) – France’s manufacturing activity grew slightly faster in June than initially forecast, despite ongoing supply-chain pressures caused by transport disruptions due to the Iran war, a business survey showed on Wednesday.
The S&P Global France Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 51.2 points in June from 49.7 in May.
Any figure above 50 points shows growth, while below 50 points denotes a contraction in activity.
The final June PMI figure of 51.2 points was stronger than the flash reading of 50.7 points, and it showed a return to growth after that index had fallen below the 50 points level from April to May.
S&P Global said French manufacturers had recorded higher volumes of outstanding work compared with May and that there had also been an increase in backlogs of work in June.
“Manufacturers in France remain under pressure, but it’s a positive sign that the downturn didn’t worsen in June. PMI price indices coming down from May is also good news and could be a harbinger of lower inflation, both in manufacturing and the economy more broadly,” said Joe Hayes, economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Hayes added, however, that supply chain pressures were continuing to weigh on the manufacturing sector.
“Poor transport availability was often mentioned and the survey data showed that firms preferred to buy less and use up inventories. How long disruption persists in supply chains could also be a factor that determines how quickly France’s manufacturing economy can turn things around,” he added.
(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
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