Economics
French Manufacturing Contracts in Sign of Sluggish Recovery
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French manufacturing contracted in July at the fastest pace this year in a sign that the euro area’s second-largest economy is struggling to gather pace.
A Purchasing Managers Index for the manufacturing industry fell to 47.6 from 48.2 in June, London-based Markit Economics said today. That’s the lowest since December 2013 and the third straight reading below 50, the mark that signals contraction. Economists had forecast a decrease to 48, according to a Bloomberg News survey.