Euro zone sees service sector growth slow
Posted on July 3rd, 2011
Linda Young – AHN News Writer
Paris, France (AHN) – Growth in the euro zone’s services sector economy slowed slightly in May and business confidence weakened to its lowest point in 18 months, according to surveys released on Friday.
The slowdown in growth occurred despite inflationary pressures beginning to ease.
Eurozone growth slowed to a four-month low of 56 in May, down slightly from 56.7 in April, according to the Markit Eurozone Services PMI released Friday. Any reading over 50 represents growth.
However, business activity was not uniform among eurozone nations with France recording the strongest growth. Germany reported slightly slower growth than France did, but it still registered robust expansion. However, other nations saw a weaker trend in growth with Ireland and Spain experiencing modest growth while business activity in Italy was nearly stagnant.
The Markit Eurozone Services PMI measures the changes in the activities of about 2,000 businesses that include diverse companies ranging from hotels to banks. PMI stands for purchasing managers’ indices, which measures the economic performance of a number of sub-indices, or activities, which include such things as prices, service activity and new business.
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Tags: Euro Zone, Slow
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