Silf/Swedbank Sweden Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI)

Sweden's Silf/Swedbank Manufacturing Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) is an indicator of business cycles in the Swedish economy, calculated by Swedbank in cooperation with Silf, on the basis of a monthly survey of purchasing managers working in manufacturing companies. The index enables a quick evaluation of the country's economy state. It is published on the first banking day of every month, at 08:30.

Every month, a questionnaire is sent to about 200 purchasing managers employed in the manufacturing sector. The managers are asked to evaluate the state of a specific activity in their company: whether it has increased, decreased or has not changed. The respondents evaluate orders, production, employment, delivery times and inventories in warehouses.

The index value is calculated as a sum of the percentage of respondents reporting an increase and half of responses reporting no change. Values more than 50 indicate an economic growth, while values less than 50 indicate a decline.

Often purchasing managers can track changes in market conditions prior to other company employees, because purchases precede company's production activities. They are among the first to notice changes. PMI is interpreted as a leading indicator of production and inflation, and it is therefore popular with analysts. Swedish PMI growth is an indication of favorable market conditions and can be seen as positive for SEK quotes.