PARIS (Reuters) – Output in the French economy fell slightly overall again in January, a purchasing managers’ survey showed on Tuesday, but manufacturing activity improved for the first time since August.
A decline in activity in the country’s dominant services sector continued to drag down the overall picture, according to S&P Global’s flash composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for January, which slipped to 49.0 points, from 49.1 in December.
Any figure above 50.0 indicates an expansion in activity, while below that suggests a contraction.
“The downturn remains demand-driven, and overall new business inflows fell again in January,” said Joe Hayes, senior economist at S&P Global, adding: “In addition to persistent high inflation, (…), rising euro zone interest rates present another drag to demand as borrowing costs increase.”
However, the flash PMI for French manufacturing rose…
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