FX.co ★ German Private Sector Growth Slows in March

Germany’s S&P Global Composite PMI slipped to 51.9 in March 2026 from 53.2 in February, signaling the weakest pace of private-sector expansion so far this year. Growth in the services sector was restrained by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, even as manufacturing output surged to a 49‑month high, supported by supply chain disruptions that, somewhat paradoxically, lifted factory activity. Overall new business volumes were broadly unchanged: weaker demand for services was largely offset by a pickup in manufacturing orders. Employment fell across both sectors, and firms’ expectations for the year ahead softened. Cost inflation accelerated, especially in manufacturing, while average output prices increased only marginally faster than before.