Global manufacturing and service sector activity grew at the fastest pace in 19 months in February, enabling companies to crank up staff levels, an indicator based on national PMI surveys showed on Friday.
The All-Industry Output Index for February, produced by J.P. Morgan together with research and supply organisations, rose to 58.3 from 56.6 the previous month, moving further above the 50 line that divides growth from contraction.
"February saw broad-based, rapid global economic expansion," said David Hensley, director of global economics co-ordination at J.P. Morgan.
The all-industry indicator combines service sector and manufacturing data from countries including the United States, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Japan and China. The global employment index jumped to 54.4 from 51.5, as companies took on staff at the fastest rate since June 2000.
"The labour market exhibited renewed strength, which suggests that manufacturers and service providers expect the current acceleration in growth to be maintained in the coming months," Hensley said.
The global manufacturing PMI, published on Wednesday, rose to a 1-1/2 year high of 55.3, boosted by a strong pick up in output and new orders. The global services gauge climbed to a six-month high of 59.0, from January's 56.7.
Both sectors posted faster growth of new business on the month, pushing the global new orders index up to 57.1 from 56.4.
The global input prices index slid to 62.4 from 62.8, its lowest since August, as inflation eased in the service sector.
National surveys showed that in the eurozone service sector activity picked up to a more than five-year high whilst the manufacturing sector put in its best performance in 19 months. Growth also picked up in both sectors in the United States, the world's biggest economy, according to data from the Institute for Supply Management.
The picture was more mixed in Britain, where service sector growth jumped unexpectedly to a 22-month high but the pace of manufacturing expansion slowed.