The situation improved in September in industry in Switzerland, with a slight improvement in order books and employment. The services sector, on the other hand, saw its activity deteriorate, according to the PMI index published Tuesday by procure.ch and UBS.
In industry, the purchasing managers’ index increased by 0.9 points over one month to 49.9 points. This key economic barometer, established each month thanks to a survey of 430 Swiss companies, has progressed since June, when it was still at 43.9 points. But at less than 50 points, it is just below the growth zone.
The PMI is thus doing better than anticipated by the economists surveyed by the AWP agency, who expected it to be between 46.0 and 48.5 points.
“The September PMI index raises hopes of stabilization and economic recovery in the coming months in industry,” said the authors of the survey in a press release.
This recovery is essentially the result of an improvement in the situation in terms of order books, the sub-index of which increased by 1.1 points to 50.0 points and which indicates that companies are no longer showing a contraction of their orders. Production also remains dynamic, despite a decline of 0.9 points to 51.9 points.
On the employment front, the situation also seems to be improving with a sub-index up 3 points to 48.7 points. This development still indicates a contraction in employment, but much less pronounced than in previous months.
The services sector, on the other hand, recorded a deterioration, with the PMI index in this area contracting by 3.1 points to 49.8 points and falling back below the growth threshold it had crossed the previous month. The projections of specialists surveyed by AWP anticipated it between 50.0 and 52.0 points.
The sub-components of orders (-3.2 to 48.2 points) and employment (-4 to 44.6 points) posted marked declines. “Given the importance of the services sector for the entire job market, this development gives rise to a certain fear,” the economists underlined.
This article was automatically published. Sources: ats/awp
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