Investing.com - French private sector activity slowed slightly in July, pulling further back from May’s six-year peak but still pointed to a solid start to the second half of the year for the euro zone’s number two economy according to data released on Monday.
The preliminary reading of the Markit services purchasing managers’ index came in at 55.9 this month down from 56.9 in June.
Economists had forecast an uptick to 56.7.
The manufacturing PMI rose to 55.4, compared to expectations for 54.6 and up from 54.8 a month earlier.
The composite output index, which measures the combined output of both the manufacturing and service sectors ticked down to 55.7 from 56.6, falling short of expectations for 56.4.
A reading above 50.0 on the index indicates industry expansion, below indicates contraction.
“The latest set of PMI figures indicate that the French private sector continued to expand at a robust pace in July, despite losing a little momentum from the previous quarter," said Markit economist Annabel Fiddles.
“Further increases in total new orders and backlogs suggest that companies will continue to ramp up output and add to payrolls going forward, and marks a solid start to the second half of the year.”