00:00Alex, just looking at this, we have seen a jump in the composite PMI, higher than forecast.
00:06Talk us through these numbers.
00:09Yeah, the headline number is certainly reassuring.
00:12It confirms that we are sort of gradually continuing to grow in the eurozone.
00:17But I think the real takeaway from today's numbers is when you look at the manufacturing sector,
00:23especially in Germany.
00:24And there, the PMI indicator jumped to above 50.
00:28That's the level that indicates growth for the first time since 2022.
00:33So that's a real milestone that we've seen here.
00:36And that's obviously because of the massive government spending we're seeing in infrastructure and defense.
00:44The advance in the index was driven by new orders.
00:48So that just shows that this whole transmission of fiscal policy is starting to work.
00:53And it should translate into higher growth for Germany and for the broader eurozone.
00:58Yeah, pretty remarkable that Germany's manufacturing sector grew for the first time since 2022.
01:04It's been a really long time since the manufacturing sector actually grew in Germany.
01:08What does this all mean, though, for the European growth outlook as a whole?
01:14So for now, I would say it mostly confirms the assumption that we're going to see a pickup, especially in
01:20Germany.
01:22Germany only grew 0.2 percent last year, and that's expected to pick up to somewhere around 1, somewhere north
01:28of 1 percent.
01:29So you need to see this kind of momentum for that to become true.
01:33We've already seen some signs in the factory orders at the end of last year.
01:38Now we need some further confirmation from production numbers.
01:41We're also going to have new business sentiment surveys on Monday.
01:48Those have tended to be a bit more negative.
01:50We're going to see if those pick up as well.
01:53And then this will also translate into somewhat stronger growth for the eurozone in the coming quarters.
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