Economic Buzz: UK Business Activity Declines Further In September

23 Sep 2022 , 03:54 PM

The latest UK Flash PMI? data, compiled by S&P Global on behalf of CIPS, pointed to a further decline in UK private sector output during September. Though modest, the rate of contraction was the quickest seen since January 2021, with businesses often commenting on the negative impacts of high costs and a weaker economic outlook on client spending and output. The headline seasonally adjusted S&P Global / CIPS Flash UK Composite Output Index slipped from 49.6 in August to 48.4 in September, to indicate a reduction in UK private sector business activity for the second month in a row. Although this signaled only a mild rate of contraction, the September reading was the lowest seen since the start of 2021. Employment remained a bright spot, which continued to rise strongly overall in September, despite the rate of job creation being unchanged from Augusts 17-month low. However, signs of spare capacity became increasingly apparent, with backlogs of work falling at a quicker pace. Although both input costs and output charges rose at softer rates, the increases were still among the steepest seen in the surveys history.Powered by Commodity Insights