US flash S&P Global Composite PMI improves to 52 in April

Sagar Dua FXStreet

S&P Global released on Thursday the flash estimate of the United States (US) S&P Global Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), which expanded in April. The index printed at 52, better than the final March reading of 50.3.

“US business activity growth recovered slightly in April, having slowed to near-stagnation in March following the outbreak of war in the Middle East. However, the overall pace of expansion remained subdued, most notably in the services economy where demand faltered,” according to the official report.

Manufacturing output in the same month also improved, rising to 54 from the previous 52.3 and beating expectations of 52.5. Finally, the Services PMI surged to 51.3 after printing at 49.8 in March and surpassing the market’s forecast of 50.

(This section below was published at 11:41 GMT as a preview of the flash US PMI data for April)

US flash PMI Overview

The preliminary United States (US) S&P Global Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data for April is due for release today at 13:45 GMT.

According to the preliminary estimates, the US Manufacturing PMI expands at a faster pace to 52.5 from the previous reading of 52.3. The Services PMI is expected to have returned to 50.0 after declining to 49.8 in March. A figure below 50.0 is considered a contraction in the business activity.

An improvement in both the manufacturing and the services sectors suggests that the overall business output expanded at a faster pace. In March, the US Composite PMI arrived at 50.3.

Investors will pay close attention to the private sector PMI data to get cues about how much the Middle East War has impacted business activity.

How could the US PMI data affect EUR/USD?

EUR/USD trades 0.2% lower at around 1.1680 ahead of the US S&P Global PMI data release. On a daily chart, the pair holds just above the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement at 1.1666 but remains capped by the 20-period Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at 1.1689, which suggests that the near-term trend is uncertain.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 50.2 is neutral, hinting at waning upside momentum with the upside bias remaining intact.

On the topside, immediate resistance is located at the 20-day EMA near 1.1689, followed by the 50.0% retracement at 1.1745 and the 61.8% level at 1.1825, with further hurdles at 1.1938 and 1.2082.

Looking down, initial support emerges at the 38.2% retracement at 1.1666; a break lower would expose the 23.6% level at 1.1567, ahead of a more substantial floor around the Fibonacci anchor at 1.1408.

(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)

Economic Indicator

S&P Global Composite PMI

The S&P Global Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), released on a monthly basis, is a leading indicator gauging US private-business activity in the manufacturing and services sector. The data is derived from surveys to senior executives. Each response is weighted according to the size of the company and its contribution to total manufacturing or services output accounted for by the sub-sector to which that company belongs. Survey responses reflect the change, if any, in the current month compared to the previous month and can anticipate changing trends in official data series such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP), industrial production, employment and inflation. The index varies between 0 and 100, with levels of 50.0 signaling no change over the previous month. A reading above 50 indicates that the private economy is generally expanding, a bullish sign for the US Dollar (USD). Meanwhile, a reading below 50 signals that activity is generally declining, which is seen as bearish for USD.

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