Eurozone business growth near six-year high
Updated : 09:37
Eurozone business growth hit a near six-year high in March, according to a survey released on Wednesday.
IHS Markit's final eurozone composite purchasing managers' index - which measures activity in both the services and manufacturing sectors - rose to 56.4 from 56.0 the month before, but was below the flash estimate of 56.7.
A reading above 50 signals expansion, while a reading below indicates contraction.
The final eurozone services business activity index came in at 56.0 in March, down from the flash estimate of 56.5 but up from February's 55.5.
France and Germany accounted for a big chunk of the growth, with their PMIs both coming in at 70-month highs.
Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, said: "The expansion recorded by the final PMI numbers was not quite the growth spurt indicated by the flash release, but still points to an impressive rate of economic growth. The latest numbers round off the strongest quarter since the spring of 2011 and are consistent with eurozone GDP rising by 0.6% in the first three months of 2017.
"This is a broad-based upturn among the euro’s largest members, with 0.6% growth signalled for both Germany and France, while Spain looks set to have enjoyed 0.8-0.9% growth in the first quarter, according to the PMI data. Growth has also perked up in Italy during the first quarter despite a slight pull-back in March, with the surveys indicating a 0.3-0.4% expansion."
Pantheon Macroeconomics said: "A slight undershoot compared with the initial estimate, mainly due to a lower than expected increase in the French services PMI. In addition, the Italian services PMI slipped to 52.9 from 54.1 in February.
"These are minor downside surprises, however, and the data overall point to solid conditions in the EZ private sector. New business growth - in both sectors - reached a 71-month high which increased work backlogs and lifted employment further. Inflation pressures are rising, but firms are, for the most part, able to pass on costs to clients."