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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》PMI shows 17th month of expansion
‘TAKING OFF’: The results showed the nation’s manufacturers have a positive outlook on growth, while an HSBC PMI reported the biggest jump since April 2011
By Amy Su / Staff reporter
Last month, manufacturing activity expanded for the 17th consecutive month, a report released by the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research （CIER, 中華經濟研究院） said yesterday. It is an indication that the nation’s manufacturers have high expectations for growth over the next six months,.
The official purchasing managers’ index （PMI） reading stood at 58.5 last month, up 0.3 points from June, the Taipei-based think tank said in its monthly report. A reading of 50 and above represents expansion and less than 50 signifies a contraction.
The index — a leading indicator of the economic outlook over the next three to six months — comprises five major sub-indices: new orders, production, employment, inventories and supplier deliveries.
The Taipei-based think tank attributed the month-on-month rise in PMI last month to an accelerating expansion of new orders, production and employment.
The new orders sub-index increased 2.7 points to 62.3 last month from a month earlier, with the production sub-index up 0.5 points to 62.2, the report said.
In addition, the employment sub-index climbed 2.4 points to 59.2 last month from June, marking the second-highest level since the institute launched the index in 2012, the report said.
The sub-index on employers’ outlook over the next six months — a reference indicator not included in the PMI’s five major sub-indices — stood at 65.5 last month, remaining above 60 for the seventh straight month.
“The results indicated domestic firms’ bullish outlook for the second half of the year.” CIER president Wu Chung-shu （吳中書） told a press conference.
A separate report issued by HSBC yesterday showed its PMI reading for Taiwanese manufacturers had climbed to 55.8 last month, up from 54 seen in June and marking the sharpest jump since April 2011.
The result demonstrated that domestic manufacturers saw a robust improvement in overall business conditions last month, with output, total new orders and new export orders all rising sharply, the UK-based bank said in the report.
Companies expanded their workforce for the 14th successive month last month as part of plans to raise production capacity, while purchasing activity increased at the highest rate since January, HSBC said in the report.
Average input price inflation accelerated to a 38-month high, while output charges continued to fall, albeit marginally, the report said.
“Taiwan’s economy is taking off as demand and output conditions improve simultaneously,” Hong Kong-based HSBC economist John Zhu （朱日平） said in the report.
Zhu said the increase in output last month looked sustainable, given the corresponding acceleration in new orders both at home and abroad.
However, the sharp rise in input prices last month was probably due to a temporary spike in oil prices, he added.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
