French Private Sector Suffers Setback in September

2025-09-23 07:31 By Luisa Carvalho 1 min. read

The HCOB Flash Composite PMI for France fell to 48.4 in September 2025 from 49.8 in August and below analysts' estimates of 49.7.

The reading marked the 13th consecutive contraction, with private sector activity shrinking at the quickest rate in five months.

Both manufacturing (PMI at seven-month low of 48.1 vs 50.4 in August) and service (PMI at 48.9 vs 49.8) sectors saw sharper output falls, with manufacturing particularly affected by weak demand.

New orders continued to fall for the 16th month, reflecting weaker client demand due to domestic political uncertainty.

Export conditions remained weak, though new export orders fell at the slowest pace in three months.

Despite subdued conditions, net employment increased marginally.

In terms of prices, the overall rate of input price inflation eased to a five-month low, prompting the first charge reductions since May.

Lastly, the overall level of business confidence weakened slightly since August and was well below its historical average.



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