France's services sector contracts further in April, final PMI shows

Reuters Wed, May 6, 2026 at 3:52 PM GMT+8 1 min read

PARIS, May 6 (Reuters) - France's services sector contracted in April, as demand weakened amid economic and political uncertainty ‌linked to the Iran war, a monthly survey by ‌S&P Global showed on Wednesday.

The S&P Global France Services final PMI fell to ​46.5 in April from 48.8 in March, exactly in line with an earlier, flash survey. That figure of 46.5 was its lowest level since February 2025.

Any figure below 50 shows a contraction ‌in activity, while above ⁠50 shows expansion.

The France Composite final PMI for April, which includes both the services and manufacturing ⁠sectors, also fell to 47.6 from 48.8 in March, marking its lowest level since February 2025.

New orders in the services sector ​fell at ​the fastest rate since November ​2023, with firms citing slower ‌client decision-making, inflationary pressures and geopolitical headwinds, S&P Global said.

Cost pressures also intensified, with input price inflation climbing to a 29-month high, driven by higher energy and raw material costs caused by the impact of the Iran war, it added.

"Services and ‌manufacturing pulled the French economy in ​different directions in April. We should ​probably discount the factory ​expansion, though, which is likely to be fleeting ‌due to front-loaded ordering ahead of ​anticipated price increases," ​said Joe Hayes, principal economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

"Services, on the other hand, has seen a significant hit ​to demand from ‌increased uncertainty, with activity in this part of the ​economy weakening as a result," Hayes added.

(Reporting by Sudip ​Kar-Gupta; Editing by Joe Bavier)

Terms and Privacy Policy Privacy Dashboard More Info

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Money”