Euro area money growth records hefty slowdown in October

Money supply growth in the single currency block decelerated sharply last month, possibly signalling a further downturn in euro area purchasing managers' surveys.

According to the European Central Bank, the annual rate of growth in the M3 money supply aggregate fell back from 6.3% for September to 5.1% in October.

Economists had penciled in a dip to 6.2%.

Pantheon Macroeconomics's senior European economist, Melanie Debono, noted that eliminating the impact of a one-off factor that boosted September's reading, then M· slowed to 5.8%, which nevertheless marked a hefty slowdown.

"And the components suggest the downturn in EZ activity will continue to intensify, unlike the green shoots in the business surveys," she added.

Growth in M1 slowed from 5.6% to 3.8%, pointing to even slower economic growth and falling PMIs into 2023, she said.