Business activity in Dublin’s private sector continues to increase during Q3 2024.
The latest PMI survey, from S&P Global, shows that business activity in Dublin’s private sector continued to increase during the third quarter of the year. The expansion was slightly stronger than that seen in the previous quarter with the headline rate increasing to 52.8, up from 52.4 in Q2, but below the 53.5 reading from Q3 2023.
Accelerating growth of 53.2 recorded in the Construction sector, up from 51.9 in Q2, and continued, albeit slower, growth in the Services sector (51.5) coupled with a renewed expansion in Manufacturing, 53.7 compared to last quarter’s 46.5, meant that all three monitored sectors recorded growth for the first time since Q2 2022.
Growth of new orders quickened to a one-year high of 53.4 in Q3 2024, meaning that new business has now risen in three consecutive quarters. This however was down from Q3 2023’s strong reading of 54.4. The expansion in Dublin was quicker than that experienced across the rest of Ireland (52.4).
In response to the increase in activity, the rate of job creation in Dublin picked up to 54.1 in Q3, up from the previous quarter’s reading of 50.8. This was the highest reading since the same quarter of last year (56.0) and the continued growth means that employment in Dublin has been expanding since Q4 of 2020. The increase in employment in the capital was also faster than seen across the rest of Ireland (52.4).
Commenting on the PMI, Andrew Harker, Economics Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence said:
The Dublin private sector continued to tick along nicely during the third quarter, as was actually the case across the broader Irish economy as well. The most pleasing aspect of the latest set of results was a renewed rise in manufacturing production, meaning that all of the segments covered by the PMI surveys contributed to the overall expansion for the first time in more than two years. The capital’s private sector is therefore set up well to end the year on a positive note.
