Sri Lanka’s overall PMI expands during December festive season

Expansions in Sri Lanka’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) this December showed that both manufacturing and services sectors have performed well during the festive season, according to the Central Bank. 
The Manufacturing Sector PMI was 58.3 in December, slightly lower than 58.4 in November, while being higher than 57.9 recorded in December 2015. An index value higher than 50 shows expansion in activity, and all manufacturing sector sub-indices recorded values above 50.
The Manufacturing Sector received new orders at a higher pace in December compared to November, while production levels were also higher, the Central Bank noted.
However, it noted that employment levels and stocks of purchases for the period decelerated, owing to the higher number of holidays and the usage of previously held stocks during the festive season.
The Central Bank however projects manufacturing activities to grow at a lower rate compared to expectations in November. Meanwhile, the Services Sector PMI increased to 59.8 in December from 59.7 in November, but fell below the 60.2 figure recorded in December 2015.
The Central Bank said that New Business and Business Activity sub-indices drove up the services index value, while the Employment, Expectations for Activity and Backlogs of Work sub-indices declined, compared to the previous month.

Prices charged, which is not taken into consideration in the PMI compilation process, increased slightly in December, compared to November.
The Manufacturing Sector PMI has fluctuated to some extent during 2016, mainly due to weather anomalies, while the degrees of change in the Services Sector PMI have been comparatively less.