A woman sits at a cafe at Campo de' Fiori after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased in Lazio region, Rome, Italy, February 1, 2021. REUTERS/Yara NardiEuro zone business growth accelerated at its fastest pace in over three years in May, as a strong resurgence in the bloc’s reopening service industry added to the impetus from an already-booming manufacturing sector, a survey showed on Friday.
That was its highest level since February 2018 and comfortably above the 50 mark separating growth from contraction, as well as the more modest increase to 55.1 predicted in a Reuters poll. In Germany, Europe's largest economy, services activity rose by the most in nearly a year, helped by a loosening of restrictions. But supply bottlenecks in manufacturing led to production problems at a growing number of factories.
Services firms benefited from the release of pent-up demand. The new business index - which has been below 50 almost throughout the pandemic - soared to 56.7 from 49.7, its highest since January 2018.