For April
Provided by: Credit Suisse
Official Release: PDF 

From the Release: "The SVME Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) edged up by 1.4 points to 56.7 points in April, its first increase since January of this year. The index thus remains above the long-term average of 54.5 points, although there is no hiding the longer-term slowdown in the pace of industrial growth. The average PMI for the year to date is 58.5 points. This time last year it was 6% higher at 62.2 points. All in all, the latest rise in the index tells us that expansionary momentum in industry is easing off gradually.

Four out of the PMI's five subcomponents were behind the improvement in the index during the month just ended. The output component, for example, put on 2.5 points to reach 58.3 points, signaling somewhat livelier production over the month. When the trend is smoothed out over three months, however, it would seem that the slowdown is bedding in.The sliding three-month average fell from 61.0 to 58.9 points –its lowest level since the end of 2005. The backlog of orders component rose 2.3 points to 55.6 points, reflecting a modest recent boost to order books. The longer-term picture nonetheless also reveals lower activity levels. At 57.9 points, the average backlog of orders subindex for the year to date lags 9.6% behind the year-back figure. The stocks of purchases component was up 4.2 points to 52.8 points, while the suppliers' delivery times component extended by 0.3 points to 55.8 points. Meanwhile, the employment component slipped 1.7 points to its lowest level since June 2006 (59.0 points)."