ECONOMICS COMMENTARY — Mar 12, 2021

Global growth accelerates as COVID-19 restrictions ease, but price pressures hit 12½ year high

The following is an extract from IHS Markit's monthly PMI overview presentation. For the full report please click on the link at the bottom of the article.

Global economic growth accelerated in February, according to the worldwide PMI surveys conducted by IHS Markit, with growth falling just short of last October's peak to signal the second-strongest expansion since August 2018. At 53.2, up from 52.3 in January, the JPMorgan Global PMI™ (compiled by IHS Markit) indicated rising output for the eighth straight month as demand continued to revive from the initial impact of COVID-19 lockdowns.

Whereas growth had slowed in the three months to January, primarily reflecting the re-introduction of measures to control further outbreaks of the virus in many countries, February saw restrictions ease slightly on average, notably in the US. IHS Markit's Global COVID-19 Containment Index fell from 48 in January (which had been its highest since last May) to 45 in February.

Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist, IHS Markit

Tel: +44 207 260 2329

chris.williamson@ihsmarkit.com

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Purchasing Managers' Index™ (PMI™) data are compiled by IHS Markit for more than 40 economies worldwide. The monthly data are derived from surveys of senior executives at private sector companies, and are available only via subscription. The PMI dataset features a headline number, which indicates the overall health of an economy, and sub-indices, which provide insights into other key economic drivers such as GDP, inflation, exports, capacity utilization, employment and inventories. The PMI data are used by financial and corporate professionals to better understand where economies and markets are headed, and to uncover opportunities.

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This article was published by S&P Global Market Intelligence and not by S&P Global Ratings, which is a separately managed division of S&P Global.

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