Monthly PMI Bulletin: March 2026

The following is an extract from S&P Global Market Intelligence's latest Monthly PMI Bulletin. For the full report, please click on the 'Download Full Report' link.

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Growth accelerates, inflation intensifies ahead of Middle East war

The following analysis describes the economic landscape through the lens of PMI surveys compiled by S&P Global in over 40 economies. The content reflects the PMI team's analysis of business metrics collected from around 30,000 companies and does not necessarily reflect the views of S&P Global Market Intelligence's economic forecasters or S&P Global Ratings.

PMI surveys produced by S&P Global indicated an acceleration of worldwide economic growth prior to the outbreak of the Middle East war, with growth the fastest since May 2024.

February's expansion was one of the best seen since the pandemic, with robust service sector growth accompanied by a marked improvement in the manufacturing sector, where production growth jumped to its strongest since December 2021.

The upturn was driven by the largest monthly influx of new business since May 2023, reflecting rising demand and improved global trade. However, despite improved order books, employment remained largely unchanged globally, principally reflecting a sustained focus on cost control amid subdued business optimism about the year ahead.

Global price growth hit the highest since May 2025, thanks primarily to stubborn labour cost growth and rising raw material prices. A further increase in price growth is likely after energy costs rose sharply after the PMI data collection in February, driven by the US-Israeli attacks on Iran and Iran's retaliatory strikes in the Gulf.

Regional growth trends meanwhile shifted further during February. Growth in the major developed economies was led by Japan, as improved performances in Asia and Europe contrasted with a cooling of growth in the US and ongoing decline in Canada.

In the major emerging markets, the biggest change was evident in mainland China, where output growth rose to the fastest since May 2023, though India continued to report the strongest upturn. The ASEAN manufacturing sector also reported a further improved performance, the PMI climbing to the highest since comparable data for the region were available in 2012.

Purchasing Managers' Index™ (PMI^®) data are compiled by S&P Global for more than 40 economies worldwide. The monthly data are derived from surveys of senior executives at private sector companies, and are available only via subscription. The PMI dataset features a headline number, which indicates the overall health of an economy, and sub-indices, which provide insights into other key economic drivers such as GDP, inflation, exports, capacity utilization, employment and inventories. The PMI data are used by financial and corporate professionals to better understand where economies and markets are headed, and to uncover opportunities.

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This article was published by S&P Global Market Intelligence and not by S&P Global Ratings, which is a separately managed division of S&P Global.