Producer confidence remains invariably low

In July, Dutch manufacturers were just as low-spirited as in the preceding month. The producer confidence index stood at -14.8, as against -15,0 in June. The mood gradually improved after an all-time low in February, but it still remains very negative.

Producer confidence consists of three component indicators: expected output in the next three months, producers’ opinions on their stocks of finished products and their opinions on their order books.

Manufacturers were more pessimistic with respect to their future output than in June. The number of Dutch manufacturers expecting output to decrease was clearly higher than those expecting an increase. Manufacturers were again positive about their stocks of finished products, but their opinions on their order positions were invariably negative.

The number of manufacturers indicating a slump in the value of orders received over the past three months still exceeded those reporting an improvement. The order position index (orders received expressed in months of work) dropped from 101.4 in June to 98.4 in July.

In July, manufacturing industry used 76 percent of their total output capacity available. This is slightly more than in April this year, when the industrial capacity utilisation rate was more than 74 percent, but the rate remained exceptionally low. Four in every ten manufacturers indicated that production suffered from lack of  demand. Nearly half of Dutch manufacturers experienced no obstructions with respect to their production activities in July.

Producer confidence in manufacturing industry