Latest data released by Markit - 16 December 2019
- Prior 46.9
- Services PMI 52.4 vs 52.0 expected
- Prior 51.9
- Composite PMI 50.6 vs 50.7 expected
- Prior 50.6
No surprises there as the drop in the manufacturing print has been foreshadowed by the more sluggish French and German prints earlier. Overall, this points to more stagnation seen in the euro area economy in Q4 as the composite reading keeps steady just above 50.
Markit notes that:
"The Eurozone economy closes out 2019 mired in its worst spell since 2013, with businesses struggling against the headwinds of near-stagnant demand and gloomy prospects for the year ahead.
The economy has been stuck in crawler gear for fourth straight months, with the PMI indicative of GDP growing at a quarterly rate of just 0.1%."
The outlook for next year remains challenging and any signs of an imminent recovery is still pretty much shelved until the headwinds from the manufacturing recession start to dissipate.