The slump in the eurozone’s manufacturing sector remained substantial at the start of the fourth quarter, with steep and accelerated contractions in new orders, purchasing activity and backlogs contributing to another considerable fall in factory production. Notably, indicators for the aforementioned sub-indices were among the lowest in their respective histories, underscoring major weakness within the euro area goods-producing economy. October survey data also signalled the fastest reduction in factory employment levels since August 2020 as business confidence dropped to an 11-month low. Manufacturers’ input prices ... (full story)