Joseph Clark
The HCOB France Services PMI stabilized at 50.1 in July 2024 from 49.6 in the previous month, ending two consecutive months of contraction.
Key findings include: Output broadly stagnates in July, ending two-month period of decline; New business continues to fall, particularly from overseas; Business confidence slips to year-to-date low.
“The Olympic Games are boosting the French economy. According to anecdotal evidence, there are companies for which the Olympic Games are generating unusually high business activity in July. This does, however, mean that business activity might drop in September when the Olympic Games are over. Additionally, lower uncertainty due to the end of the election period increased activity levels. In July, business activity edged higher, with the respective index at 50.1, slightly above the expansion threshold. In the third quarter, the French economy might grow in the ballpark of 0.5% to 0.6% because of the Olympic Games and due to stronger growth in the service sector, which we also might see in the August HCOB PMI figures” said Norman Liebke, Economist at Hamburg at Hamburg Commercial Bank.
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