Economic Buzz: Service Sector Grows Strongly In UK

5 May 2022 , 05:28 PM

UK service sector expanded at a stronger pace in April although increased costs and the war in Ukraine combined to contain the pace of expansion, survey results from S&P Global showed on Thursday. The Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply final services Purchasing Managers Index came in at 58.9 in April, which was above the flash score of 58.3 but down from 62.6 in March. Input costs rose to the greatest extent in close to 26 years of data collection driven by increased fuel costs, with higher energy charges and wages. In turn, companies raised their own charges at a pace that was only fractionally below Marchs record. Despite facing substantial cost pressures, service providers continued to expand their staffing levels notably in response to rising new business. The composite output index dipped to 58.2 in April from 60.9 in March. The rate of growth remained sharp, but eased to a three-month low. The flash reading was 57.6. Although the rate of expansion in services activity softened at the start of the second quarter, it remained much faster than that seen for manufacturing production.Powered by Commodity Insights