German manufacturing sector remains sluggish in October, PMI shows

BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany's manufacturing sector showed little sign of recovery in October as production growth slowed down again, a business survey showed on Monday.

The headline HCOB Germany Manufacturing PMI inched up to 49.6 from 49.5 in September, remaining below the 50.0 threshold that separates expansion from contraction, S&P Global reported.

While output grew, the pace of the expansion slowed from September's 42-month high, driven mainly by the investment goods segment.

New orders saw a slight uptick, returning to marginal growth after a decline in September, despite continued weakness in export sales, particularly to Asia and the U.S.

"Germany's manufacturing sector continued to tread water in October," said Nils Müller, an economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank AG. "A lack of demand and persistent uncertainty weighed on the broader sector."

The survey showed a modest rise in output prices for the first time in six months, driven by the consumer goods segment, while input prices continued to fall, albeit at the slowest rate in seven months.

Employment in the sector fell for the 28th consecutive month as firms maintained hiring freezes amid subdued capacity pressures.

Business expectations for future output declined to the lowest since December last year, with concerns over falling backlogs and high costs weighing on sentiment.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Toby Chopra)

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