Business activity in the eurozone continued to grow in November, driven primarily by the services sector, which posted its fastest growth in a year and a half. According to the preliminary HCOB Eurozone Composite PMI from S&P Global, the indicator fell only slightly to 52.4 after hitting a two-year high in October. Services rose to 53.1, the best level since May 2024, while manufacturing contracted again: the manufacturing PMI fell to 49.7, accompanied by the fastest job losses in seven months.
The situation across the eurozone’s largest economies was mixed. In Germany, private sector growth slowed due to an unexpected decline in industrial production and weak service sector growth. In France, activity nearly stabilized: growth in services almost offset a deeper contraction in industrial output.
Outside the EU, in the UK, November brought a near-complete halt to business growth, as companies temporarily froze their plans ahead of the upcoming budget. Meanwhile, business costs in the eurozone rose at their fastest pace since March, although companies largely absorbed the cost increases and final prices increased by the smallest amount in a year.