In the last quarter of 2022 the euro zone eked out growth, managing to avoid a recession, as gross domestic product expanded 0.1%, data from Eurostat showed today.S&P Global's Composite Purchasing Managers' Index , seen as a good gauge of overall economic health, climbed to a seven-month high of 50.3 last month from 49.3 in December, just ahead of a 50.2 preliminary reading.
While demand fell again the new business index moved much closer to the breakeven point and with firms increasing headcount optimism about the year ahead was at its highest since April.Activity in the bloc's dominant services industry also bounced back to growth last month as consumers shrugged off the cost of living crisis and drove a modest upturn in demand.Although the pace of input cost increases for services firms decelerated they lifted their selling prices at a faster rate.