The contraction in the eurozone private sector continued in November as more businesses continued to falter, reigniting fears of a recession, albeit a shallow one, towards the end of the year.

The final Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the currency bloc came in at 47.6 in November, up from a flash estimate of 47.1 and better than October’s near three-year-low of 46.5. At the same time, new business continued to decline for a sixth month in a row, although at the slowest pace in four months. Export sales continued to fall for a 21st consecutive month.

“The service sector maintained its downward slide in November. The modest improvement of the activity index does not leave much room for optimism regarding a swift recovery in the immediate future,” said Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank.

Meanwhile, the UK construction sector remained subdued during November, on the back of continued weakness in housebuilding, a survey revealed on Wednesday.

The S&P Global/CIPS UK construction PMI inched lower to 45.5 last month from 45.6 in October, the second-lowest reading since early in the COVID-19 pandemic. PMI readings below 50 signal contraction in the sector. Survey feedback from construction firms suggested that anemic performance in the sector is underpinned by poor domestic economic conditions and client indecision on major investment spending.

Finally, the Chinese government’s ability to repay its debts has been downgraded by credit rating agency Moody’s Investor Services, which said the crisis in China’s property could hamper the country’s efforts to revive its flagging economy.

Moody’s warned that high levels of debt among regional and local governments, many of which are finding it hard to repay their debts as they fall due, is expected to force the Chinese government to step in with financial assistance. Moody’s lowered its outlook to negative from stable while keeping a long-term rating of A1 on the nation’s sovereign bonds. China’s reliance on fiscal stimulus to support local governments and the crisis in the property sector are posing risks to the nation’s economy, Moody’s said.

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