French services sector grew in July, helped by Olympics, PMI shows

By Sudip Kar-Gupta

PARIS (Reuters) - France's dominant services sector expanded in July, a survey showed on Wednesday, helped by a pick-up in business from the Olympic Games although the country's manufacturing sector weakened further.

The HCOB flash purchasing managers index for the services sector, compiled by S&P Global, rose to 50.7 points in July from 49.6 points in June, beating a Reuters poll forecast of 49.8 points.

Any figure above 50 points marks an expansion in activity, while below 50 signals a contraction.

By contrast, the flash July PMI for the French manufacturing sector fell to 44.1 points from 45.4 in June - below forecasts for a figure of 45.8 points.

The flash July composite PMI - which comprises both the services and manufacturing sectors - stood at 49.5 points, up from 48.8 in June and above a Reuters poll forecast of 49.0 points.

Hamburg Commercial Bank economist Norman Liebke said the Olympic Games - which runs from July 26 to August 11 in Paris - had given an uplift to the services sector.

"The Olympic Games are fuelling the French economy. Business activity increased for French service providers for the first time in three months. According to anecdotal evidence, this is partially due to the Olympic Games," said Liebke.

"The French economy seems on track for a recovery in the second half of the year, a recovery led by the service sector, but both input and output prices remain a challenge for the French economy as inflation rates accelerated," he added.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Christina Fincher)