Asia and Europe manufacturing grows as Omicron keeps spreading - Philippines post good number but Indonesia slight drop

MANILA, Jan 3 (Bloomberg): Asia and European factory activity continued its expansion in December, lifted by resilient demand and easing supply-chain bottlenecks as the omicron strain begins to spread in the region.

North Asia’s export hubs led the recovery as they enjoyed better-than-expected industrial production and robust demand for their tech products.

The IHS Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index for Taiwan rose to a 55.5 last month from 54.9 in November, while South Korea saw the sharpest jump to 51.9 from 50.9.