Australian factory activity continued to expand in May, with the S&P Global Australia Manufacturing Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) landing above the neutral 50 mark, according to a report by S&P Global released on Monday.
The figure stood at 51.0, against last month's 51.7, marking the slowest pace of expansion since February. Nevertheless, the sector came above the 50 no-change for a fifth straight month.
"Despite a moderation in the pace of growth, anecdotal evidence suggested that the slower rate of expansion, including a slight reduction in output, was partially driven by the election and may therefore prove temporary," Jingyi Pan, Economics Associate Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said.
