Czechia Factory Growth Strongest Since 2022

The Czech Manufacturing PMI rose to 54.1 in August 2026 from 52.2 in July, marking the strongest improvement in operating conditions since April 2022. Growth accelerated in output and new orders, with new business rising at the fastest pace since February 2022, supported by stronger international demand. New export sales also increased at a solid pace, though growth eased from July. Employment resumed growth as firms responded to stronger demand, while backlogs accumulated at the fastest pace since December 2021 amid worsening supplier delays, material shortages and logistics issues. Input cost and selling-price inflation eased but remained elevated. Firms increased purchasing and safety stocks, while finished-goods inventories declined. Business confidence also strengthened to a five-month high, supported by expectations of stronger demand and planned machinery investment.

The Czech Manufacturing PMI fell to 52.2 in July 2026 from 53.9 in June, which marked the highest level since April 2022. The latest reading was the joint-softest since February (alongside May 2026), reflecting slower growth in both output and new orders compared with June. Still, new orders continued to be supported by foreign demand, with new export sales rising at the fastest pace since August 2021. However, pressure on balance sheets reportedly led firms to limit increases in input buying and pre-production inventories, while also contributing to a renewed decline in employment. Backlogs of work continued to accumulate at a solid pace as supply chain pressures persisted, although their severity eased. On the cost front, both input cost and output price inflation moderated in July but remained historically elevated, as the prices of key inputs, including metals and chemicals, continued to rise sharply. Business confidence fell to a three-month low but remained historically elevated.

The Czech Manufacturing PMI rose to 53.9 in June 2026 from 52.2 in May, marking the strongest improvement in factory activity since April 2022 and remaining well above the long-run average. Output growth accelerated to a three-month high as total new orders increased at the fastest pace since February 2022, driven by stronger domestic demand and the sharpest rise in export orders since January 2022. Employment broadly stabilized after five months of job cuts, while purchasing activity continued to grow and pre-production inventories rose at the fastest since April 2022. Supplier delivery times remained severely stretched amid disruptions linked to the Middle East war, contributing to the sharpest rise in backlogs since January 2022. Meanwhile, input cost inflation eased to a three-month low but remained historically elevated, while output price inflation also moderated from May's recent high. Lastly, business confidence softened slightly from May but stayed above its long-run average.