Manufacturers more optimistic in September

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© Hollandse Hoogte / Flip Franssen
In September 2021, the mood among Dutch manufacturers has improved as compared to August. Confidence has risen from 9.6 to 11.1, as reported today by Statistics Netherlands (CBS). Manufacturers are mainly more positive about their future output.

The long-term average over the past two decades stands at 0.5. Producer confidence reached an all-time high (12.3) in July 2021 and an all-time low (-28.7) in April 2020. In September, producer confidence is well above the long-term average.

Producer confidence manufacturing industry (seasonally adjusted)
yearmonthbalance (average of the component questions)
2017October8.2
2017November9.1
2017December8.9
2018January10.3
2018February10.9
2018March9.5
2018April8.2
2018May9.8
2018June7.7
2018July6.3
2018August5.9
2018September5.7
2018October5.9
2018November7.2
2018December7.5
2019January5.8
2019February6.3
2019March6.1
2019April6.7
2019May4.7
2019Juni3.3
2019Juli 3.9
2019August3.9
2019September3.3
2019October3.6
2019November2.8
2019December2.9
2020January2.5
2020February3.7
2020March0.2
2020April-28.7
2020May-25.1
2020June-15.1
2020July-8.7
2020August-5.4
2020September-4.8
2020October-5.6
2020November-3.8
2020December-0.4
2021January0.6
2021February0.1
2021March3.4
2021April6.5
2021May8.8
2021June11.5
2021July12.3
2021August9.6
2021September11.1

Manufacturers mainly more positive about future output

In September, manufacturers are more positive about their future output than in August. Manufacturers’ opinions on order positions and stocks of finished products have hardly changed.

Manufacturers’ opinions on all three component indicators are positive. Manufacturers who anticipate output to increase over the next three months outnumber those expecting a decrease. More manufacturers consider their order position to be strong rather than weak, given the time of year. There are fewer manufacturers who define their current stocks of finished products as too large rather than too small.

Confidence improving the most in textiles and clothing industry

In September, producer confidence has improved in over half of the manufacturing industries. Confidence in the textiles and clothing industry has improved the most. However, manufacturers in the transport equipment industry are considerably less optimistic than they were in August.

Producer confidence by sector (seasonally adjusted)
 September 2021 (average of the component questions)August 2021 (average of the component questions)
Textiles, clothes, leather25.817.8
Timber and building materials2319.7
Electrotechnical products and machinery21.920.4
Petroleum11.98.8
Paper and printing11.311.8
Metal9.59.9
Food, beverages, tobacco6.33.7
Transport equipment39.5

Manufacturing output 14.1 percent up in July

In July 2021, the average daily output generated by the Dutch manufacturing industry was up by 14.1 percent from July 2020. Output was up by 17.9 percent in the previous month. Relative to July 2019, growth was more than 9 percent.

Producer confidence further down in Germany

Germany is an important foreign market for the Dutch manufacturing industry. In September, German producer confidence according to the Business Climate Index of the IFO Institute fell due to both lower expectations and a lower assessment of the current situation. In July, the average daily output generated by the German manufacturing industry grew by over 6 percent year-on-year, as reported by Destatis. Relative to July 2019, however, it was still lower by nearly 6 percent.

Sources

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