Euro area survey indexes stay close to three-year high

John Fraher & Catherine Bosley

Growth in euro-area manufacturing and services stayed close to the fastest since 2011 in March as France improved, providing further evidence that the region’s recovery is on track.

Indexes for both industries based on surveys of purchasing managers were little changed from February, London-based Markit Economics Ltd. said in a statement today. A composite gauge slipped to 53.2 from 53.3 in February, matching the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 26 economists. The index has been above 50, indicating expansion, since July.

The report follows European Central Bank Mario Draghi’s prediction that a fledgling recovery from the sovereign debt crisis will gradually gain strength. Risks to that scenario include the euro’s 6.2 percent increase against the dollar in the past year and signs of slowing growth in China.

“The ongoing upturn in business activity in March rounds off the euro zone’s best quarter since the second quarter of 2011,” Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit, said in a statement.

In China today, another survey showed manufacturing weakened for a fifth straight month, deepening concern the nation will miss its 7.5 percent growth target this year. The Purchasing Managers’ Index from HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit dropped to 48.1, compared with the 48.7 median estimate of 22 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg and February’s final 48.5 figure.

The euro, which has appreciated about 6 percent against the dollar in the past 12 months, traded down 0.2 percent at $1.3770 at 10:45 a.m. in London.

Although the ECB predicts the euro area’s economy will return to full-year growth this year, it is expanding less quickly than other major economies and...