French services sector returned to growth for first time since December, PMI shows

Oct 5 (Reuters) - France's dominant services sector grew in September for the first time since the end of last year, helped by a rebound in output after businesses had been impacted in August by an intense summer heatwave, a business survey showed on Monday.

• The S&P Global France Services final PMI Business Activity Index rose to 51.2 points in September from 48.0 in August, said the survey by S&P Global.

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

• That final September services PMI figure was slightly weaker than the flash reading of 51.4 points.

• The final September composite PMI figure  - which comprises both the services and manufacturing sectors  - also rose to 51.1 points, from 48.5 in August. 

• That final September composite figure compared to a flash composite figure of 51.2.

• Joe Hayes, senior principal economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said that while the September figures were encouraging, inflation remained a concern.

• "It would be remiss to not question the durability of France's economic expansion in September, given the survey data suggest that underlying demand conditions remain frail. There could be some payback in these numbers after the hit to business activity in August due to extreme heat," said Hayes.

• "With the war in the Middle East continuing and global oil and gas prices staying elevated, the risk that energy cost inflation passes through to more parts of the economy is rising," added Hayes.

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