German economy unexpectedly shrinks Private sector activity in the euro zone is almost stagnant

The eurozone as a whole barely grew this month as private sector activity in Germany, the region's largest economy, unexpectedly fell.

The S&P global composite purchasing managers' index for the euro zone fell to 50.1 in July, according to data released Wednesday, Bloomberg reported. While that was above the 50 level that signals growth, it was the worst reading since February and below the expectations of economists surveyed by Bloomberg, who expected the index to hold steady at 50.9 last month.

The fall can be blamed on Germany, which unexpectedly contracted and fell below the level that separates expansion from contraction for the first time since March. France also missed out on growth, with a reading of 49.5 beating the expectations of all but one of 11 economists surveyed.

Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Commerzbank Hamburg, said: "It feels like the euro zone economy barely changed in July... Manufacturing conditions deteriorated significantly, offsetting modest growth in services."