PMIs still in contraction territory, ESI sentiment keeps falling

Today, our focus is on the sentiment indicators in October. On Friday, the Manufacturing PMI index in Czechia and in Romania remained below the threshold of 50, at 48.1 and 47.2 respectively, in October. In Poland, PMI rose for the fourth month running from 48.6 in September to 49.2. Although the PMI index suggests ongoing contraction in the manufacturing sector, the PMI index climbed marginally up in all three countries. Last week, Economic Sentiment Indicators (ESI), as well as Consumer Confidence for October, were released. The average value for the ESI in the region decreased in October, marking a more visible downward trend. The ESI worsened in all CEE countries except Romania, where respondents from manufacturing, services and retail trade sectors were more optimistic. In Hungary, which underperformed in 3Q24, the Economic Sentiment Indicator is at the lowest level since February. Consumer confidence also weakened across the region, most visibly in Slovakia. However, the exception was Czechia, where consumers reported slightly higher confidence in October compared to the previous month.