French services sector contracted in June by more than forecast, PMI shows

PARIS, July 3 (Reuters) - France's services sector contracted in June by more than initially forecast, as sluggish demand and inflationary pressures weighed on businesses, said a survey by S&P Global.

The S&P Global France Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 46.8 points in June from 44.3 in May, although that final June services figure came below a flash figure of 47.4.

Any figure below 50 points shows a contraction in activity, while above 50 shows expansion.

The S&P Global France Composite PMI Output Index, which includes both the services and manufacturing sectors, rose to 47.2 from 44.9 in May - also below a flash June composite PMI figure of 47.6 and below that 50 points threshold.

"All things considered, the June PMI survey for France could have been much worse, especially after the recessionary warning signs being flagged in the May numbers and by the downward revision to first quarter GDP," said Joe Hayes, senior principal economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

"What hasn't changed, however, is the fact that the French economy is still mired by sluggish demand, weak business confidence and strong inflationary pressures," he added.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Toby Chopra)