Swedish economy faces uncertain future
Sweden's economy is continuing to show signs of weakening despite a buoyant labour market, according to Swedbank's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for November.
The decline in PMI was driven by a sharp drop in exports.
PMI, which mirrors developments in the manufacturing sector, fell to 55.1 points in November from 59.4 points the month before. The result was the lowest since mid-2005.
"We have been seeing this drop since the summer. It has mainly been caused by a weakening global economy," Swedbank economist Jörgen Kennemar told TT.
A reading above 50 indicates the manufacturing sector is expanding while one below 50 suggests it is contracting.
"Even though all sub-indexes fell, we still have reasonable industrial growth. It will be interesting to see over the next few months how well Sweden's industrial sector handles a slow-down in the global economy," said Kennemar.
But despite the slow-down, purchasing managers remained relatively optimistic with regard to the labour market.
"When it comes to jobs, it takes a while before we notice any difference. The job index usually has the slowest reaction time of all our sub-indexes," said Kennemar.
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The decline in PMI was driven by a sharp drop in exports.
PMI, which mirrors developments in the manufacturing sector, fell to 55.1 points in November from 59.4 points the month before. The result was the lowest since mid-2005.
"We have been seeing this drop since the summer. It has mainly been caused by a weakening global economy," Swedbank economist Jörgen Kennemar told TT.
A reading above 50 indicates the manufacturing sector is expanding while one below 50 suggests it is contracting.
"Even though all sub-indexes fell, we still have reasonable industrial growth. It will be interesting to see over the next few months how well Sweden's industrial sector handles a slow-down in the global economy," said Kennemar.
But despite the slow-down, purchasing managers remained relatively optimistic with regard to the labour market.
"When it comes to jobs, it takes a while before we notice any difference. The job index usually has the slowest reaction time of all our sub-indexes," said Kennemar.
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