LONDON, Aug 23 Reuters Business activity across the euro zone contracted for a second straight month in August as the cost of living crisis forced consumers to curtail spending while supply constraints continued to hurt manufacturers, a survey showed on Tuesday.

The global economy is increasingly at risk from sliding into recession as Russia39;s invasion of Ukraine and China39;s strict COVID19 lockdowns have further damaged supply lines not yet recovered from the pandemic.

Meanwhile, consumers are facing the highest inflation in a generation which is forcing central banks to tighten monetary policy aggressively just as the economies need support.

SP Global39;s flash euro zone Composite Purchasing Managers39; Index PMI, seen as a good guide to overall economic health, fell to 49.2 in August from 49.9 in July, just above the median forecast in a Reuters poll for a bigger drop to 49.0.

A reading below 50 indicates a contraction and August39;s preliminary estimate was the lowest since February 2021.

The continued decline in the PMIs in August suggests that a recession in the winter halfyear is increasingly likely, said Christoph Weil at Commerzbank.

Russia is supplying only a limited amount of gas, high inflation is tearing deep holes in the coffers of private households, companies are facing massive uncertainties the economic outlook for the economy in the euro zone is bleak.

A downturn in Germany, Europe39;s largest economy, deepened in August, a separate PMI…