歐元區8月經濟穩步增長 德國經濟增速相對放緩

The 19-country eurozone lost some economic momentum in August, largely because of a slowdown in Germany, a closely watched survey showed, days ahead of another possible stimulus package from the European Central Bank.

一份密切關注歐元區的調查報告表明，擁有19個成員國的歐元區8月份經濟失去了部分活力，很大程度是因爲德國經濟增速下降。這份報告是在歐洲央行實行可能的刺激方案之前幾天發佈的。

Financial information company IHS Markit said its purchasing managers' index — a broad gauge of economic activity — for the eurozone fell to a 19-month low of 52.9 points in August from 53.2 the previous month.

金融信息公司IHS Markit聲稱，歐元區的採購經理人指數--經濟活動的一個宏觀指標--在8月份降到了19個月以來的最低水平，只有52.9，而上個月是53.2。

The fall was unexpected as the initial estimate for August was 53.3.

這種下降是出人意料的，因爲初步估計8月份的指數是53.3。

In spite of the fall, the eurozone is still growing, albeit sluggishly as anything above 50 indicates expansion.

儘管這一指數有所下降，但是歐元區經濟也在一直增長——雖然增長很緩慢，只稍稍高於50。

The firm did not assign any fundamental reason to the slowdown, such as uncertainty related to Britain's decision in June to leave the European Union, but did note that Germany was "perhaps the biggest cause for concern" as output growth slowed to a 15-month low.

IHS Markit沒有說明經濟放緩的任何一個基本原因，比如6月份英國“脫歐”導致的不穩定，但是卻指出德國“可能是經濟放緩最大的原因”，因爲其產出增長率是15個月以來的最低水平。

Italy and France also saw modest rates of growth while Spain remained the "standout performer'' with another strong quarter of growth at around 0.7 percent.

意大利和法國的經濟增長仍見一般，西班牙的表現依然“十分亮眼”，季度增長率約爲0.7%。

The firm's chief economist, Chris Williamson, said the survey overall was "clearly disappointing'' and suggested it may fuel expectations of a further stimulus package from the European Central Bank this week.

IHS Markit首席經濟師克里斯·威廉姆森稱，報告整體上“明顯讓人失望”，他還暗示，這將燃起人們對歐洲央行於本週出臺經濟刺激方案的期待。

"The survey data will fuel expectations that the ECB would prefer not to wait before injecting more stimulus into the economy, adding pressure for policymakers to act later this week to help shore up confidence in both the outlook for the economy and the bank's commitment to its inflation target," he said.

他表示：“調查數據增強了對歐洲央行本週的經濟刺激方案的期待，歐洲央行會盡快採取更多經濟刺激措施，向政策制定者們施加壓力，使他們行動起來幫助重建（人們對世界經濟）經濟前景的信心，以及央行完成通貨膨脹目標承諾的信心。"