Euro Area private sector contracts again at end of Q3

Private sector activity in the Euro Area registered another moderate contraction at the end of the third quarter, data by Markit Economics showed on Wednesday.

Euro Area’s Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) was reported at a final 47.2 in September, up from a preliminary estimate of 47.1 and improving from August’s 3-year low of 46.7.

Last month, inflows of new orders decreased at the steepest rate since November 2020, while outstanding business volumes shrank the most since June 2020.

The bloc’s services sector activity contracted for a second straight month in September. Euro Area’s Services PMI came in at a final 48.7 in September, up from a preliminary reading of 48.4 and also above August’s level of 47.9.

Meanwhile, Germany’s business activity contraction eased slightly in September. The HCOB Germany Composite PMI came in at a final 46.4 in September, up from a preliminary reading of 46.2 and improving from August’s 39-month low of 44.6.

Still, September has been the third successive month of contraction in private sector activity.

The near-term outlook remained weak, Markit Economics said, after another considerable drop in new business and a rapid contraction in backlogs of work.

Germany’s Services PMI came in at a final 50.3 in September, up from a preliminary reading of 49.8 and improving from 47.3 in August.

However, the expansion was marginal amid weak demand, as new business shrank at a sharper rate and firms in the sector utilized backlogs of work to spur activity.

The Euro was last edging up 0.19% on the day against the US Dollar, with the EUR/USD currency pair trading at 1.0486. Yesterday the major Forex pair went down as low as 1.0448, or its weakest level since December 7th 2022.