- For the first time this year, the item "weak economic activity" became the main obstacle, with 39.1% of the responses.

- Respondents also indicated that "lower external demand" as well as "the adverse international environment" were factors obstructing their performance. These two indicators accounted for 26.1% and 18.3% of the responses.

During November, Nuevo Leon's manufacturing sector once again experienced a reduction in its economic activity indicators, as shown by the expectations survey. Although October seemed to be a month of rebound, the revised results show that the slower pace has been maintained in the last 4 months.

On the "new orders" side, the index remains below 50 points, with a slight reduction in November to 46.4 points. In the same sense, the "physical volume of production" item, which stands out for having rebounded in October, once again reached 46.5 points.

The lower activity also impacted "capacity utilization", exports and imports. These variables dropped to 48 points, 47 points and 46.6 points, respectively. Within these items, capacity utilization, which one month ago was expanding, stands out.

In terms of the number of workers, the index indicates lower hiring activity, showing 47.5 points. It is important to note that, due to seasonal factors, the industrial sector tends to generate fewer jobs during the months of November and December.

The lower economic activity shown in the indexes is reflected in the factors that hindered companies. For the first time this year, the item "weak economic activity" became the main obstacle, with 39.1% of the responses.

In addition, respondents also indicated that "lower external demand" and "the adverse international environment" were factors hindering their performance. These two indicators accounted for 26.1% and 18.3% of the responses.

In contrast to what was presented over the course of the year, the factors "political landscape" and "shortage of skilled personnel" reduced their proportion of mentions to 33.9% each. However, they remain the second and third most important factors affecting the operation of companies.

Finally, the proportion of companies investing in construction, machinery and equipment fell to 30%. Nevertheless, the figure remains above other months.

Los indicadores de expectativas buscan conocer de forma cualitativa la situación coyuntural de la industria manufacturera de Nuevo León, mediante la perspectiva de los directivos de las empresas en diversas variables relacionadas con su operación. Para ello, a los empresarios se les cuestiona mes con mes cómo se comportó una lista de variables con relación al período anterior, teniendo la posibilidad de responder: mucho menor, menor, igual, mayor, mucho mayor. Con esto, se elabora un índice cuya importancia radica en que, si el número obtenido se encuentra por arriba de 50 puntos, la variable se encuentra en expansión; pero si está por debajo de esta magnitud, significa una contracción.

CAINTRA Nuevo León