The markets are digesting the August PMI reports on Thursday, with releases from France, Germany, the eurozone, the UK and the United States.

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European PMIs

Across Europe, the PMIs indicated slightly stronger activity in manufacturing, while services declined.

In France, the Manufacturing PMI improved to 46.4, up from 45.1 in July and better than the median estimate of 45.0. Similarly, Germany improved from 38.8 to 39.1, above the estimate of 38.7. The eurozone PMI rose to 43.7, up from 42.7 and higher than the estimate of 42.6.

Although these readings point to slightly stronger activity in the manufacturing sector in August, the overall picture remains grim, as manufacturing continues to decline (the 50.0 level separates contraction from expansion). The readings out of Germany, the largest economy in the eurozone have been particularly weak, indicating significant decline in manufacturing activity.

Services PMIs showed weaker activity in August. France eased from 47.1 to 46.7, short of the estimate of 47.5. Germany showed a significant drop of 5.0 points, falling from 52.3 to 47.3, missing the estimate of 51.5. The eurozone slowed to 48.3, down from 50.9 and shy of the estimate of 50.5.

UK PMIs

In the UK, Manufacturing and Services PMIs both slowed in August. Manufacturing eased to 42.5, down from 45.3 in July and below the estimate of 45.0 points. This marked the lowest level since May 2020. Manufacturing has been deep in the doldrums and has declined for 13 consecutive months.

US PMIs

According to S&P Global, the US Manufacturing and Services PMIs both decelerated in August. The Manufacturing PMI dipped to 47.0, down from 49.0 in July and shy of the estimate of 49.3. The Services PMI also lost ground but managed to show very slight growth, falling in August from 52.3 to 51.0, below the estimate of 52.2.

In the Forex market, both the Euro and the British Pound are lower against the US dollar on Wednesday, but have pared losses since the release of the US PMI reports.

The EUR/USD currency pair has fallen by 0.06%. Prior to the US PMI release, EUR/USD was down 0.27%.

The GBP/USD currency pair has declined by 0.31% Thursday. The GBP/USD was down 0.75% before the US PMI release.

Stock Markets on Wednesday: France and Germany Flat, UK and US Higher  

In France, the CAC 40 is down 3.0 points (0.042%) at 7,237.22

In Germany, the DAX 40 is up 3.36 points (0.053%) at 15,708.98

In the UK, the FTSE 250 Index is up 157.31 points (0.87%) at 18,181.57  

In the US, The S&P 500 Index is up 32.94 points (0.75%) at 4,240.49 and the Nasdaq 100 Index has gained 171.62 points (1.15%) at 15,086.83

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