Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 3, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 25, 2026
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Italy's manufacturing sector contracted for the 11th month in February, with PMI at 47.4. Output and new orders continue to decline amid a challenging economic climate.
ROME (Reuters) - Italian manufacturing activity contracted for an 11th month running in February, though by slightly less than expected, a survey showed on Monday, amid persisting declines in output and new orders.
The HCOB Global Purchasing Managers' Index for manufacturing came in at 47.4 in February, up from 46.3 in January but remaining well below the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.
A Reuters survey of seven analysts had pointed to a reading of 46.7.
"The situation in Italy's manufacturing sector remains bad," said HCOB economist Jonas Feldhusen. "Neither the HCOB PMI nor the current geopolitical climate offer much hope for a turnaround in the short-term," he added.
The manufacturing output sub-index rose to 48.8 from 47.4 the month before, while the new orders indicator was at 44.8 compared to 42.8 in January.
Data issued by national statistics institute ISTAT last month showed Italian industrial output was much weaker than expected in December, falling 3.1% from the month before and pointing to deepening problems for the country's stagnant economy.
(Reporting by Angelo Amante, editing by Gavin Jones and Christina Fincher)
The article discusses the ongoing downturn in Italy's manufacturing sector, as indicated by the February PMI data.
How does the PMI for February compare to previous months? It increased slightly to 47.4 from 46.3 in January.
What are the implications of the PMI data? It suggests continued contraction in the manufacturing sector, impacting the Italian economy.
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