Eurozone business activity hits 10-month low

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Eurozone business activity fell sharply in November, increasing the odds of a half-point cut in interest rates by the European Central Bank next month.

Hamburg Commercial Bank’s composite Eurozone purchasing managers’ index unexpectedly fell to a 10-month low of 48.1 points, sinking below the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction, according to a flash estimate published on Friday.

Analysts had expected no change from last month’s reading of 50.

“The Eurozone’s manufacturing sector is sinking deeper into recession, and now the services sector is starting to struggle after two months of marginal growth,” said Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank, which publishes the index with S&P Global. 

This is a developing story