Political uncertainty hits France's services sector, PMI shows

By Sudip Kar-Gupta

PARIS (Reuters) - Political uncertainty in France hit the country's services sector, a monthly survey showed on Wednesday, as risks that Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government could collapse weighed on the euro zone's second-biggest economy.

The HCOB France services final PMI fell to 46.9 in November from 49.2 in October. Any figure below 50 shows a contraction in activity, however the final reading was above November's flash services PMI of 45.7 points.

The final composite PMI, which includes both the services and manufacturing sectors, fell to 45.9 points in November from 48.1 in October.

France's services sector has lost ground for three months in a row, with a pick-up in business that occurred during the summer Paris Olympics having been eroded as political worries mount.

"The positive signals from the HCOB PMI for the French service sector that were seen over the summer, partly due to the Olympics, are now a thing of the past," said Hamburg Commercial Bank economist Tariq Kamal Chaudhry.

French business confidence fell in November to its lowest in over four years, the survey showed.

"This shows how fragile business sentiment is against the backdrop of further political uncertainty should Michel Barnier's minority government end in collapse over the budget deadlock," he added.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Christina Fincher)

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