PARIS, April 21 (Reuters) – Private sector activity in France grew more than expected in April, helped by the good performance of the services sector, the first results of the S&P Global monthly survey showed on Friday. purchasing managers.
The “flash” PMI for the services sector rose to 56.3 from 53.9 in March, beating the Reuters consensus of 53.4.
Its equivalent for the manufacturing sector, on the other hand, fell to 45.5 after 47.3. Economists and analysts expected it to average 47.8.
The composite “flash” PMI, which includes the two sectors, thus returned to 53.8 and exceeded the consensus, which gave it at 52.7, like last month.
“The French private sector is starting the second quarter on a positive note, with the services sector, which accounts for around 80% of the country’s economy, posting its strongest growth in April since May 2022,” said Norman Liebke, at Hamburg Commercial Bank.
“The major social movements observed in France, against the pension reform, have visibly weighed on the latest PMI data for the manufacturing sector. Surprisingly, the service sector does not seem to have been affected,” added the economist. (Laetitia Volga, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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