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ROME (Reuters) - Italy's long-running manufacturing contraction deepened in March, with production volumes falling at the fastest rate in four months, a survey showed on Tuesday.
The HCOB Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing fell to 46.6 in March from 47.4 in February, marking the 12th consecutive month below the 50.0 threshold that separates growth from contraction.
A Reuters survey of eight analysts had pointed to a reading of 48.0.
New orders declined at the same steep rate as the month before, with a reading of 44.8, while employment also contracted for the sixth month running.
"Italy's manufacturing sector remains in the grip of crisis, showing no signs of improvement in March," said HCOB economist Jonas Feldhusen.
"All manufacturing sub-sectors are grappling with the ongoing crisis," he added.
National statistics bureau ISTAT said last week that morale among Italian businesses and consumers slumped in March, casting a shadow over already weak growth prospects for the euro zone's third-largest economy.
Italian gross domestic product increased by 0.7% in each of the last two years, and most analysts forecast a similar modest growth rate in 2025.
(Reporting by Angelo Amante, editing by Gavin Jones and Hugh Lawson)
