Yahoo TV

The euro zone's economic recovery weakened this month, according to new figures released Monday (January 24).

The closely watched composite Purchasing Managers Index dropped to 52.4 in January, from 53.3 in December.

It's the lowest number since last February and below analyst projections.

A resurgent health crisis is largely to blame.

Many European authorities have encouraged people to stay home and avoid socialising.

The restrictions have hurt the bloc's dominant services industry, which fell to a nine-month low, but was still in growth.

There was better news from Germany.

Businesses in Europe's largest economy expanded at their fastest rate in four months.

The country's manufacturing sector has been helped by easing supply chain bottlenecks.

France was a different story, though.

Business growth there slowed more than forecast due to the health crisis and inflationary pressure.

Consumers around the euro zone have felt the cost of that inflation with prices rocketing.

The bloc's composite output prices index matched the high of November's survey.

It also comes after the region's inflation hit a record high last month.