Euro-Zone Economy Handed Surprise Boost by Paris Olympics

  • Composite PMI increases to 51.2; economists had seen 50.1
  • Factory struggles to eventually hit services, de la Rubia says
WATCH: The Paris Olympics gave the euro-area economy an unexpectedly strong boost. Oliver Crook reports.Source: Bloomberg
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The euro-area economy got an unexpectedly strong boost from the Paris Olympics, which propelled private-sector growth to the fastest pace in three months.

S&P Global’s composite Purchasing Managers’ Index jumped to 51.2 in August from 50.2 in July, exceeding even the most optimistic forecast in a Bloomberg survey of analysts. A gauge for services climbed to the highest level since April, though the region’s manufacturing slump deepened.