Irish manufacturing activity shrinks at fastest in 3 years in May

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Irish manufacturing activity shrank at its fastest pace in three years in May on sharp falls in output and new orders that reflected contractions in its global peers' markets, a survey showed on Thursday.

The AIB S&P Global manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 47.5 from 48.6 in April, holding below the 50 line separating expansion from contraction for the third successive month.

"The downturn in global manufacturing stems from weak demand, with declining new orders, falling production and a rundown of inventories. These traits are very evident in the latest Irish data," AIB's chief economist Oliver Mangan said.

May saw further declines in new orders, particularly export orders, the survey's authors said. Spare capacity rose further while stocks of finished goods fell.

Employment, however, increased for a sixth month while the survey found an easing of inflationary pressures in the sector.

(Writing by Conor Humphries; editing by John Stonestreet)