The Markit Eurozone PMI® Composite Output Index fell from 49.3 in February to a three-month low of 48.7 in March, according to the preliminary ‘flash’ reading, which is based on around 85% of usual monthly replies. The latest reading signals a contraction in business activity for the second successive month, and the sixth decline in the past seven months. Output fell on average over the first quarter of 2012, albeit to a lesser extent than in the final quarter of 2011. Nevertheless, the PMI therefore suggests that the Eurozone has slipped back into a technical recession, defined as two consecutive quarters of falling ... (full story)