June 2010: PMI down again

The Israel Purchasing Managers Index dropped  in June by 2.1% to 46%, from 48.1% in May, signaling that manufacturing activity shrank for a second straight month
 
The Israel Purchasing Managers Index (IPMI) compiled by Bank Hapoalim and the Israel Purchasing and Logistics Managers Association dropped  in June by 2.1% to 46%, from 48.1% in May, signaling that manufacturing activity shrank for a second straight month and at a faster pace.
 
The IPMI index is below the 50% dividing line between economic expansion and contraction for the second consecutive month. The index has dropped 16.3 points in the past four months. It peaked at 68.8 last November.
 
In a written statement Bank Hapoalim said that the level of IPMI is one lowest in the world, and only Greece's is lower, at 42.2%.
 
Most of the items of the index were below the 50% level in June, including domestic demand, export demand, and industrial output. While the employment component of the index continued to show expansion for the 11th consecutive, month, it slowed sharply. 
 
Bank Hapoalim says that the Israel Purchasing Managers Index points to an economic slowdown in the second half of the year. "The index's components point to a slowdown in both domestic and export demand. Other economic indicators indicate falling exports, and while consumption figures still show growth, the rate is slower," it said.
            June '10            May '10            Change
PMI      46.0            48.1            -2.1
New orders - domestic            44.1            44.9            -0.8
New orders - exports48.1            49.8            -1.7
Production            48.6            46.7            +1.9
Employment            51.5            56.9            -5.4
Raw materials prices   65.6            76.9            -11.3