Latest PMI® data for Ireland continued to signal challenging operating conditions across the manufacturing economy. Goods producers scaled back production at a rate that was among the sharpest in the survey's history and new orders declined at a quicker pace, owing to ongoing demand fragility. Purchasing activity was pared back markedly but employment growth was renewed. Elsewhere, falls in both input costs and output charges were sustained in July with the drop in the former the quickest since April 2020.