The Eurozone economic downturn deepened in September, with business activity contracting for a third consecutive month. Although only modest, the rate of decline accelerated to a pace which, barring pandemic lockdowns, was the steepest since 2013. Forward-looking indicators, such as new order inflows, backlogs of work and future output expectations, point to the decline gathering further momentum in coming months. Worsening performances were seen in both manufacturing and services, with demand falling at steepening rates in each sector as a result of the rising cost of living and growing gloom about future prospects. ... (full story)