Tag: services sector

The services sector in India expanded at its fastest pace so far this year in March as an easing of Covid-19 restrictions boosted demand, but elevated inflationary pressures clouded business confidence, a private survey showed. The S&P Global India Services Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 53.6 in March from 51.8 in February, beating the 52.5 estimates in a Reuters poll. While the index remained above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction for an eighth straight month, input costs rose at the sharpest pace in 11 years. Higher chemical, fuel, raw materials, retail, transportation, and vegetable prices increased operating expenses, dampening business confidence. Domestic demand increased on high footfall, leading to rising sales and pushing the new business sub-index to a three-month high. However, international demand contracted at its sharpest rate in six months as the Russia-Ukraine war-affected supply chains. Read more

The biggest sector of India's economy, Services, continued to contract for the third month in a row in July due to restrictions imposed by state governments to arrest the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic according to a widely tracked IHS Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI) survey. Business activity, new orders, and employment declined in July, according to a commentary associated with the survey. The latest data also pointed to an intensification of inflationary pressures across the sector, it said. New work intakes also fell for the third month running in July, albeit at a softer pace than in June. In addition to challenging conditions domestically, firms observed a further deterioration in international demand for services. New business from abroad decreased at a sharp pace that was little changed from June. Read more