- German Manufacturing PMI arrives at 60.6 in Feb vs. 56.5 expected.
- Services PMI in Germany drops to 45.9 in Feb vs. 46.5 expected.
- EUR/USD refreshes session highs above 1.21 on mixed German PMIs.
The German manufacturing sector expanded more-than-expected in February, the preliminary manufacturing activity report from IHS/Markit research showed this Friday.
The Manufacturing PMI in Eurozone’s economic powerhouse came in 60.6 at this month vs. 56.5 expected and 57.1 prior. The index jumped to three-year highs.
Meanwhile, Services PMI contracted to 45.9 in February as against the previous month’s reading of 47.0 and 45.3 anticipated. The index hit a nine-month low.
The IHS Markit Flash Germany Composite Output Index rose to two-month highs of 51.3 in February vs. 50.5 expected and 50.8 previous.
Key comments from Phil Smith, Principal Economist at IHS Markit
“February’s flash PMI results point to ongoing resilience in the German economy midway through the opening quarter, despite the country remaining under strict lockdown measures. Ongoing weakness in services, where large parts of the sector remain either closed or disrupted by virus containment measures, continues to be counterbalanced by strong, export-driven growth across manufacturing.”
“It was encouraging to see manufacturing regain momentum in February after a slight setback in growth at the start of the year.”
FX implications
EUR/USD refreshed daily highs at 1.2124, as markets cheered solid German Manufacturing PMI, although quickly eased a few pips to 1.2118 as the Services PMI contracted further.
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