“A euro-area services and factory output gauge increased more than economists forecast in May, adding to signs the currency bloc is starting to emerge from its record-long recession.
A composite index based on a survey of purchasing managers in both industries rose to 47.7 from 46.9 in April, London-based Markit Economics said today. That exceeded the median estimate of 47.2 in a Bloomberg News survey of 27 economists. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.
While the euro-zone manufacturing index rose to a three-month high of 47.8 in May, Chinese factory output contracted for the first time in seven months, signaling the country’s economic growth is losing steam for a second quarter.
“We see the euro zone being out of recession in the third quarter,” said Christian Schulz, senior European economist at Berenberg Bank in London. “We’ve seen improving confidence since the ECB provided a safety net, and the risk of countries having to leave the euro has decreased. Also austerity is fading.”
The euro extended gains after the data were released, trading at $1.2903 at 10:56 a.m. in Brussels, up 0.4 percent on the day. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index was down 2.1 percent to 303.97.
I mean, if you just keep saying “it’ll be by the 3Q of this year”, eventually you’ll be right