Eurozone manufacturing sector growth cooled to a four-month low in February, as supply chains were stretched and skill shortages persisted, final Purchasing Managers' Index data from IHS Markit showed.
The bloc's manufacturing PMI fell to 58.6 in February, higher than the flash estimate of 58.5, but down from January's 59.6. A PMI score of more than 50 indicates expansion.
"Growth could cool further in coming months," IHS Markit's Chris Williamson said. "Job creation, while still among the highest seen in the 20-year survey history, has meanwhile moderated as a result of the slower inflows of orders, adding to suspicions that the manufacturing growth peak is behind us."
Inflationary pressures intensified as output prices rose at the highest pace in almost seven years and business confidence eased from January's record high.
New export order inflows grew at the slowest pace in 11 months in February, partially impacted by the recent appreciation in the euro exchange rate.
"In terms of prices, the stronger euro appears to be helping bring down imported inflation, but widespread cases of demand exceeding supply highlight the ongoing presence of solid underlying core inflationary pressures," Williamson added.
Investment goods category led growth, followed by intermediate goods and consumer products, though the rates of increase eased.
In France, manufacturing PMI slid to 55.9 from 58.4 in January, the weakest growth since August 2017. German manufacturing sector PMI slipped to 60.6 from 61.1, final data from IHS Markit/BME showed.
"The problem lies largely in supply chains, where capacity issues have led to bottlenecks forming and allowed vendors to negotiate higher prices as demand outstrips supply," IHS Markit's Principal Economist Phil Smith said. "The seriousness of the problem is highlighted by the survey's measure of delivery times, which in February showed the greatest deterioration in supplier performance in 22 years of data collection."
Italy's headline manufacturing PMI fell to a five-month low of 56.8 in February from 59.0.
