Global economic growth accelerated in March, buoyed by a rejuvenated service sector accompanying further manufacturing growth. At 54.8, up from 53.2 in February, the JPMorgan Global PMI™ (compiled by IHS Markit), hit its highest since August 2014. The sustained expansion took the recent run of growth into its ninth straight month. Manufacturing continued to expand at an impressive pace, with growth accelerating to one of the fastest seen since 2011 despite near record supply delays and shortages of inputs. However, it was the service sector which saw the biggest improvement in March, with growth jumping to the highest since June 2018.
Faster service sector growth coincided with a further easing of measures to control further outbreaks of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) virus. IHS Markit's Global COVID-19 Containment Index fell from 46 in February to 40 in March, its lowest since last October, as restrictions were eased on average around the world for a second successive month.
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