At 55.9 in September, up from 55.0 in August (but down from the earlier 'flash' estimate of 56.5), the headline seasonally adjusted final IHS Markit Germany Services PMI Business Activity Index was at its highest level since June and signalled the second-strongest rate of growth for more than twoand-a-half years.

Commenting on the final PMI survey data, Phil Smith, Principal Economist at IHS Markit said: "For the first time in almost two years, the service sector grew at a faster rate than manufacturing, confirming a fundamental shift in the growth drivers of the euro area's largest economy. Exports had been a key factor behind growth throughout the two years prior to the recent cooling in global trade flows, but now domestic demand is picking up the slack and has become the principal driver of expansion".