France's private sector economic activity contracted at the fastest pace in five and a half years in May, according to S&P Global data. The decline reflects a sharp downturn in the services sector and a renewed drop in manufacturing output. According to Jin10, the preliminary services PMI for May was recorded at 42.9, while the composite PMI stood at 43.5, both marking a 66-month low. The manufacturing PMI fell from 52.8 in April to 48.9 in May. Joe Hayes, Chief Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, stated, "The preliminary PMI survey for May presents a series of alarming data. The inflationary impact of the oil price shock continues to spread, with price indices in both manufacturing and services rising again." He added, "Worryingly, we see a significant decline in new orders for the private sector in May, clearly indicating that this shock has substantially increased the recession risk for the eurozone's second-largest economy."