* Euro zone manufacturing growth rebounds in October
* Factory jobs growth hits highest since March 2008
* German strength again offsets weaker bloc members
(Adds details, comment)
By Andy Bruce
LONDON, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Euro zone manufacturers boosted their output in October at a faster pace than previously estimated, a business survey showed on Tuesday, with Spain and Ireland both recovering while Greece continued to struggle.
The Markit Eurozone Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose to 54.6 in October, revised up from the earlier estimate of 54.1 and comfortably higher than the final reading of 53.7 for September.
The survey showed factories across the currency area hired staff at the quickest rate since March 2008 last month. But worryingly for policymakers, there was still a growing divergence among member states' recovery rates.
Germany once again led the upturn, with growth accelerating, and while Spain saw a return to positive territory France's factory upswing moderated as output slowed to a 14-month low.
Greek manufacturing stayed firmly in the grip of recession, with the pace of contraction accelerating as output, jobs and new orders fell but Ireland saw a modest return to growth.
Financial markets were little moved by the numbers.
"It is welcome news to see euro zone manufacturing picking up in October and the sector looks like it can make a decent contribution to GDP growth in the fourth quarter," said Howard Archer at IHS Global Insight.
"The concern is that going forward it will be held back by inventory corrections drawing to a close in some countries, slower global growth and domestic demand being limited in most euro zone countries by tighter fiscal policy increasingly kicking in."
SLOWING
While still firmly above the 50 mark that divides growth from contraction, the headline reading is still some way off April's post-recession high of 57.6.
Manufacturers reported improved output last month and they took on staff at the fastest rate in around 2-1/2 years, the survey of about 2,000 companies showed.
But euro zone unemployment is still running at more than 10 percent and any optimism over manufacturing may also be tempered by surveys on the services sector on Thursday, expected to confirm a picture of slowing growth.
A Reuters poll of economists published last month showed the 16-nation euro zone economy growing 1.6 percent in 2010, before slowing to 1.4 percent next year as countries step up budget austerity measures.
The uneven economic recovery will force the European Central Bank to keep interest rates on hold at their record low of 1.0 percent until fourth quarter of next year, a Reuters poll last week predicted.
The manufacturing output sub-index saw a strong upward revision to 54.7 from the flash reading of 53.8, up from September's final number of 54.0. The jobs sub-index rose to 52.2 from 51.5 in September.
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(Additional reporting by Jonathan Cable, Editing by Patrick Graham)