Downwardly revised composite PMI suggests sluggish euroarea growth in Q1

The final Markit Eurozone PMI Composite Output Index was revised lower to 53.1 in March, up from 53.0 in February and below the flash estimate of 53.7. The downward revision was mainly driven by France and Italy which together caused 0.5 points drag out of the 0.6 point downshift. The average of the output index over the opening quarter as a whole (53.2) was the weakest registered since the fourth quarter of 2014.

Detalis showed a slower growth of new orders at service providers offset a strengthening at manufacturers, while both sectors saw weaker rates of job creation. Measured overall, employment rose at the slowest pace since last September. Price pressures remained on the downside during March.

“The eurozone economy failed to show any significant gain in momentum in March. With the PMI barely rising from February’s 13-month low, the region looks to have grown by just 0.3% again in the first quarter." said Chris Williamson, Chief Economist at Markit.