After having fallen for the first time in four months during January, new orders decreased again in February. The rate of contraction was modest but quickened to the fastest since last September.

Panellists reported demand weakness both domestically and internationally. Muted export demand was highlighted by a further solid decline in new business from abroad, the fourth reduction in as many months.

In line with the picture for new orders, manufacturing production also decreased for the second successive month in February.

In some cases, rising input buying reflected confidence in the upcoming path of manufacturing output. In fact, business confidence strengthened for the second month in a row to the highest since June last year.

Firms hope for stable economic conditions to support an improvement in new orders and thus production growth.

Another factor behind the rise in purchasing activity seen in February was a desire to make sure materials were secured amid uncertainty around availability and supply-chain delays.

Earlier, PMI posted 48.9 in January, down from 49.8 in December and below the 50 no-change mark for the second successive month.

S&P Global Market Intelligence forecasts growth of 4.6 percent for industrial production in 2025./.