* Czech new orders rise fastest on record
* Hungary PMI drops to 51.6, shows recovery choppy
* Polish PMI due on Tuesday
By Jason Hovet
PRAGUE, May 3 (Reuters) - The Czech Purchasing Managers'
Index (PMI) rose to its highest mark since March 2008, propelled
by a record rise in new orders, while Hungary's PMI dropped in
April, surveys showed on Monday.
The Czech Republic, Hungary and other export-driven
economies in central Europe are counting on a rebound in western
export markets to restart their economies and compensate for
weak spending from households feeling the pinch of rising
unemployment.
Czech PMI rose to 57.3, from 56.8 in March, and was the
ninth-highest in the survey's nearly nine-year history, Markit
Economics data showed. []
Hungary's headline PMI, calculated by under different
methodology than Markit Economics', dropped to 51.6 in April
from 54.4 seen in March as the export index dipped.
[]
"The (Czech) reading in April is the strongest in two years,
confirming the steady pace of recovery in the manufacturing
sector," 4Cast analysts said.
"The strong PMI print reflects a pick up in external demand
in support of domestic exports -- the largest share coming from
the manufacturing of motor vehicles -- but domestic demand is
still a risk to the fast recovery."
Hungary's recovery has been more choppy, but the PMI figure
stayed above the break-even 50 mark that divides expansion from
contraction for the fourth month in a row.
The new government of Hungary's centre-right Fidesz party
faces the tough challenge of restarting growth amid tight
spending limits that Hungary's international lenders require.
Fidesz has said that growth and job creation were among its
top priorities.
Hungary's jobless rate reached its highest since 1993 in the
first quarter. Czech unemployment eased slightly from a six-year
high in March.
Analysts expect little pick up in jobs this year and say
economic recovery will be driven rather by rising demand in
western markets like Germany, central Europe's main trade
partner.
"The development in Czech industry precisely copies the
development in other countries of the European Union," Pavel
Sobisek, chief economist at UniCredit in Prague.
Czech manufacturers saw their fastest monthly growth of new
orders since the survey started, underpinned by a record
increase in new export business.
In March, Volkswagen's Czech unit Skoda Auto, which exports
more than 90 percent of its production and is a bellwether for
the economy, had its best sales month ever.
The carmaker posted a 25 percent rise in sales in the first
quarter, with one in four sales in China, where it also has some
production facilities. []
A loss of orders during the economic crisis pushed most
central European countries into recession, and analysts forecast
stagnation or moderate growth this year.
Poland, whose large consumer base kept the country out of
recession last year, will release PMI data on Tuesday.
