PARIS (Reuters) – France’s services sector contracted slightly more than expected in August as a drop in new orders weighed on businesses in the eurozone’s second-largest economy.
The services index for August came in at 46.0 from 47.1 in July, the results released on Tuesday of S&P Global’s monthly survey of purchasing managers (PMI) showed.
In the first estimate, the index stood at 46.7.
The composite index, which combines services and the manufacturing sector, also fell slightly to settle at 46.0, against an initial estimate of 46.6 points and 46.6 points in July.
“The French services sector remains under pressure in August, under pressure from a third consecutive month of declining activity, coupled with a decline in new orders, both globally and abroad,” said Norman Liebke, economist at the Hamburg Commercial Bank.
“Companies surveyed primarily cite tight customer budgets and general caution about the economic outlook.”
(Benoit Van Overstraeten, Corentin Chapron, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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