|
The jump in activity will provide a glimmer of
hope for policymakers who have struggled to steer the monetary
union toward growth with modest inflation, but may also support
the European Central Bank's decision to buy sovereign bonds.
"For the first time since mid-2011 we're seeing a broad-based
improvement in growth," said Chris Williamson, chief economist
at survey compiler Markit.
"This in part reflects increased confidence after the ECB
announced quantitative easing, and we'll see more improvements
once asset purchases start in March."
Markit's Composite Flash Purchasing Managers' Index, based on
surveys of thousands of companies and seen as a good growth
indicator, rose to 53.5, its best since July, from a final
reading of 52.6 last month.
That beat even the highest forecast in a Reuters poll and marked
the 20th month above the 50 level that separates growth from
contraction.
Williamson said the PMI pointed to 0.3 percent GDP growth in the
current quarter, matching a Reuters poll, adding that a
follow-through in March could push it up to 0.4 percent.
In a positive sign for future activity, the gauge of new orders
growth at services firms rose to 53.3 from 51.7. Growth in order
backlogs rose to the highest level in nearly four years.
The PMI covering the dominant service industry also beat all
forecasts by rising to 53.9, while the factory PMI nudged up to
51.1, less than expected, with output increasing slightly
faster.
But continued price cutting by firms, although at a slower pace,
underscored the difficulty policymakers face in bringing
inflation back to the ECB's target rate of below but close to 2
percent from January's record-equaling 0.6 percent.
The ECB is set to start buying 60 billion euros worth of
government bonds a month from March to ward off deflation,
although the majority of economists in a poll this month said
that is not likely to be enough to spur price growth.
(Editing by Hugh Lawson)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
|
