Eurozone business activity jumps to 53.1, above every forecast in the Reuters poll
The S&P Global flash euro zone composite PMI rose to 53.1 in September from 52.0. A Reuters poll had expected 51.7, and the highest forecast in that poll was 52.6. ActionForex reports the same rise to 53.1 as a 41-month high, with Germany accelerating and France returning to growth.
Economics & Markets··Evening
Above the poll
The S&P Global flash euro zone composite output index rose to 53.1 in September from 52.0 in August. Readings above 50.0 signal an expansion. A Reuters poll had expected a dip to 51.7, and the highest forecast in that poll was 52.6. ActionForex reports the same move, from 52.0 to 53.1, and calls it the highest level in 41 months. The Reuters account says the reading was the fastest expansion in more than three years, and that S&P described the rise as broad across the geographies in its data.[1], [2]
Germany, France, and the components
Activity in Germany expanded solidly even as firms faced higher inflation pressure, Reuters reports, and France grew at its fastest pace in just over two years on a rebound in services demand. Overall new orders rose at the fastest pace in more than four years. ActionForex gives the component levels behind that composite: the services PMI climbed to 53.0 from 51.6, a 10-month high, and the manufacturing output index edged up to 53.4 from 53.3, its strongest reading in 55 months. The headline on that page is the same story as the Reuters composite, Germany accelerating and France back in growth.[1], [2]
Energy costs, and two readers of the print
Input costs jumped on energy prices stemming from the war with Iran, and firms passed some of that on to customers, Reuters reports. Carsten Brzeski at ING said the readings paint an economy unharmed by the energy shock. Jack Allen-Reynolds at Capital Economics said the survey supports the view that GDP rises in the third quarter despite weak official activity data in July. ActionForex's own addition is the 41-month label and the services and manufacturing output levels around the shared 53.1. That label says how far back the shared reading reaches. The expansion signal both use is a reading above 50.0.[1]
