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The
preliminary purchasing managers index for the manufacturing and
service sectors rose to 50.0 from 49.6 in June, data compiler
Markit said, confounding a Reuters poll forecast for a slight
drop to 49.2. Fifty is the mark dividing contractions in
activity from expansions, meaning activity has held steady in
the month after shrinking a little in June.
"In the face of the terrorist attack and the Brexit vote, to
have the index coming up to 50.0 in a stable economy is perhaps
a good result," Markit chief economist Chris Williamson said.
The resilience came largely from the service sector, where the
index rose to a better-than-expected 50.3 from 49.9 in June as
the flow of new business improved and firms increased headcount.
The index for manufacturing remained in contraction territory,
although it improved to a four-month high of 48.6 from 48.3 in
June instead of the deterioration expected by economists polled
by Reuters.
New orders from abroad grew for the first time in seven months,
which Williamson said might reflect a weaker euro or that French
firms might be picking up some business from British competitors
after the Brexit referendum in June.
The resilience seen in the PMI survey chimed with a broader
business confidence poll published on Wednesday by France's
INSEE statistics agency showing morale rebounding unexpectedly
in July.
(Detailed PMI data are only available under license from
Markit and customers need to apply to Markit for a license.
To subscribe to the full data, click on the link below: http://www.markit.com/Contact-Us)
(Reporting by Leigh Thomas; Editing by Michel Rose and Hugh
Lawson)
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