Overview
- The latest S&P Global PMI readings point to continued services-sector growth across major economies and imply near-term GDP growth around 0.4% for the fourth quarter.
- Eurozone activity hit a roughly 3½-year high with the composite PMI at 53.1 and services at 53.0, led by strong gains in Spain and a rebound in Germany.
- Spain recorded one of the strongest services readings at 58.3 but firms reported sharply higher costs for energy, fuel and labour that pushed up prices they charged customers.
- Japan’s services PMI eased to 51.3 even as hiring and backlogs rose, a combination S&P Global said could support another Bank of Japan rate increase; Australia saw slower services growth, a small fall in jobs and faster private-sector price rises.
- PMIs are forward-looking business surveys that flagged faster input and output-price inflation driven by higher energy and labour costs and that make upcoming official CPI and labour data crucial for central-bank decisions and household budgets.