Business in the European services sector grew slightly faster in August than in the previous month. That emerges from definitive figures from market researcher Markit.

The purchasing managers’ index, which reflects the activity, was 53.5 compared to 53.2 a month earlier. Economists had generally expected a score of 53.4. A position above 50 indicates growth, each figure below it indicates contraction. The composite index, including industry, came in at 51.9, compared to 51.5 a month earlier.

The index for the German services sector was 54.8 against 54.5 in July. The indicator for the service sector in France was 53.4, where it was 52.6 a month earlier. Levels of 50.6 and 54.3 respectively were measured for Italy and Spain.