Financial News: Downturn In French Private Sector Eases

Downturn In French Private Sector Eases

02/20/2026 - 04:46:00 (RTTNews)

(RTTNews) - The downturn in the French private sector activity slowed in February as production output continued to expand, flash survey results from S&P Global showed on Friday.

The headline HCOB composite output index climbed to 49.9 in February from 49.1 in January. The score was expected to rise moderately to 49.7.

The index remained close to the neutral level of 50.0 signaling stagnation. That said, the indicator posted above 50.0 threshold only once in the last 18 months.

"At the sector level, developments diverged at the start of the year as manufacturing gained some ground while services contracted," Hamburg Commercial Bank Junior Economist Jonas Feldhusen said.

"February was no different, as factory production growth contrasted with falling services output," added Feldhusen.

The subdued trend in output was due to the weakness in the service sector, while manufacturing production expanded again.

The services Purchasing Managers' Index rose more-than-expected to 49.6 in February from 48.4 in the previous month. The expected reading was 49.1.

The manufacturing PMI posted 49.9, down from 51.2 a month ago. This was below economists' forecast of 50.9. At the same time, the manufacturing output index fell to 51.6 from 52.1 in January.

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