Euro Area Services Sector Shrinks in April

2026-05-06 08:07 By Agna Gabriel 1 min. read

The S&P Global Eurozone Services PMI was revised up slightly to 47.6 in April 2026 from 47.4, but still fell from 50.2 in March, marking its first move into contraction in nearly a year and the sharpest decline in activity since February 2021.

Demand weakened further, with new orders falling at the fastest pace since October 2023, partly due to a drop in export business.

Employment was broadly unchanged for a second consecutive month, a notable shift from the strong hiring trend seen in previous years.

Backlogs were reduced at the quickest pace since March 2025, suggesting firms are working through existing orders.

Meanwhile, cost pressures intensified, with input and output price inflation rising to multi-year highs.

Business confidence also deteriorated, dropping to its lowest level in 42 months.



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