Business activity in the eurozone weakened further in August, as the bloc’s economic downturn extended from manufacturing to the services sector, data from a purchasing managers’ survey showed Wednesday.
The HCOB Flash Eurozone Composite PMI Output Index–a gauge of activity in the manufacturing and services sectors–fell to a 33-month low of 47.0, from 48.6 in July. The reading, which indicates activity contracted as it fell below the 50 no-change mark, also came in below expectations of economists polled by The Wall Street Journal, who expected the PMI to tick up to 48.8.