Business activity rose at the weakest pace for over one-and-a-half years, with the month also seeing slower increases in both new orders and employment. Business confidence towards the outlook meanwhile slipped to its lowest since November 2016.

The IHS Markit Flash Germany Composite Output Index fell to a 20-month low of 53.1 in May, from April's 54.6. The Index has now decreased in each of the past four months from a near sevenyear high at the start of the year. The latest slowdown reflected weaker rates of growth in both service sector business activity and manufacturing output, with each rising the least since late-2016.