French business activity picked up in October - PMI

PARIS (Reuters) - French business activity picked up in October from September, a survey showed on Wednesday, as the euro zone's second-biggest economy displays resilience in an uncertain economic landscape.

Data compiler IHS Markit said its Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for services rose to 52.9 points in October from 51.1 in September, in line with a previous estimate.

The improvement lifted the index further away from the key 50-point threshold, which demarcates an expansion from a contraction in business.

IHS Markit's overall October composite PMI reading, which includes the services and manufacturing sectors, rose to 52.6 from 50.8 in September, also in line with an earlier estimate.

Data earlier this week showed an expansion in French manufacturing in October.

"Manufacturers posted their fastest rise in production since June, but the service sector remained the key driver of growth, registering a solid expansion," said IHS Markit economist Eliot Kerr.

"The composite output index reading for October is consistent with approximately 0.3% economic growth if maintained throughout the fourth quarter," added Kerr.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Catherine Evans)