Factories around the world have so far weathered the storm threatening the eurozone economy, suggest data released yesterday.

A key indicator of the health of US manufacturing showed that it recorded its 10th successive month of growth and exceeded economists' expectations. Output figures from Asia showed that the pace of growth slowing somewhat in May but the data suggested the sharp improvement in Asian business conditions since the global financial crisis was being sustained.

“The European fiscal crisis doesn't appear to have harmed the prospects of US manufacturers, at least not yet,” said Paul Ashworth, senior US economist at the consultancy Capital Economics. The euro fell to a four-year low of $1.2112 yesterday and though Asian stock prices fell as a result of the output growth data, US stocks were buoyed by the manufacturing news.