Finnish Industry Mood Hits 3-Month High

Finland’s manufacturing confidence indicator edged up to 3 in May 2026 from an upwardly revised 2 in the previous month, reaching its highest level since February. Manufacturers’ expectations for production over the next three months strengthened to 25 from 20 in April. Meanwhile, assessments of order books deteriorated further to -14 from -12, while views on finished goods inventories softened to 1 from 4. Spare capacity also remained evident across the sector, with only 62% of firms reporting that they were operating at full capacity in May, down slightly from 64% in the previous month. In April, manufacturing confidence in Finland was stronger than the EU average.

Finland’s manufacturing confidence indicator rose to 1 in April 2026 from -1 in March, entering positive territory and moving above the long-term average of 0. Manufacturers’ expectations for order books in the coming months improved (-12 vs -20), while finished goods inventories increased (4 vs 1), bringing them in line with the long-term average of 3. Production expectations remained unchanged from the previous month (at 20). Spare capacity in the sector remained notable, with 64% of respondents reporting they were operating at full capacity in April, compared with 62% in the previous month. “The economic uncertainty is high, but the majority of Finnish companies have seen slight growth in production and sales during the first half of the year,” Penna Urrila, Chief Economist at the Confederation of Finnish Industry, said.

Finland's manufacturing confidence indicator fell to -1 in March 2026 from a five-month high of 3 in February, slipping below the long-term average of 0. Manufacturers’ expectations for production in the coming months remained positive but were slightly more cautious than in the previous month (20 vs 24 in February). Order books declined further (-21 vs -17), while finished goods inventories increased (1 vs -2), bringing them close to the long-term average of 3. There continues to be notable spare capacity in the sector, with 61% of respondents reporting they were operating at full capacity in March, compared to 57% in the prior month. In February, manufacturing confidence in Finland was somewhat stronger than the EU average.