German manufacturing shrinks amid Brexit and global trade disputes

The Eurozone came close to stalling in September after global trade disputes and the threat of a no-deal Brexit triggered the fastest fall in manufacturing output in nearly seven years.

Germany was the main cause of the slowdown following a survey of private sector activity. It had shown that the growing threat to international trade from the U.S.-China trade war had left it in the worst position since 2009.

The German Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for manufacturing fell from August’s 43.5 to 41.4 in September, making it well below the 50 mark that separates expansion from contraction.

This decline contributed to a deepening manufacturing recession across the Eurozone where output fell at the sharpest pace since 2012; the optimism among business executives fell to its lowest for seven years.