Euro zone: economic activity revives growth

(Keystone-ATS) The index calculated on the basis of corporate surveys turned out to 50.2, compared to 49.6 in December. A figure located above the 50 mark signals growth in the activity, while a figure below reflects a contraction.

“The private sector in the euro zone posted relatively encouraging results at the start of 2025,” said Cyrus de la Rubia, an economist for the Hamburg Commercial Bank (HCOB), partner of S&P Global. “The latest PMI Flash data highlights a slight resumption of expansion in January, after two consecutive months of contraction,” he said.

Improving the economic situation “was largely based on the performances of Germany, which saw its global activity starting up at the start of the year,” he noted, while in France L ‘S&P global survey “continues to report a contraction of the private sector”, certainly less strong than the previous months.

Overall, the best dynamic in the euro zone results from an improvement in the situation in the manufacturing sector. “The industrial recession continued at the start of the year, but the contraction has slightly reduced compared to December,” said Mr. de La Rubia. This contraction has even reached its lowest level since May 2024.

The activity of the service sector increased for the second consecutive month in January, although a moderate and slightly lower pace in December.

“Finally positive news from the euro zone. It is not huge, but a slight increase in the PMI index, which carries the level above 50, it is still something, ”praised Bert Colijn, economist of the ING bank.

But Jack Allen-Reynolds, Economist Capital Expert, insists on the persistent weakness of the economic situation in Europe. It rely on gross domestic product growth (GDP) of only 0.1% in the last quarter of the year 2024, compared to the previous quarter and on an “equally poor” performance for the first three months of 2025.