Business activity across the German service sector returned to contraction at the start of the fourth quarter, as a rising number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases weighed on demand and led to new restrictions. Business confidence was also hit, although employment, which is often adjusted with a lag, showed another modest increase. October saw the headline seasonally adjusted Business Activity Index – which is based on responses to a single question asking about changes in the volume of business activity compared with one month previously – move back below the 50.0 no-change mark for the first time in four ... (full story)