British service sector growth accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace in December, survey data from IHS Markit showed Thursday.
The IHS Markit/Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply Purchasing Managers’ Index, rose to 54.2 in December from 53.8 in November. Economists had expected the index to rise to 54.0.
Any reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.
Among components, new orders increased at the weakest pace since August 2016 amid subdued business investment and cost consciousness among clients.
Consequently, the rate of job creation across the service sector slipped to a 9-month low in December.
On the price front, service providers indicated another marked increase in their average prices charged, which was overwhelmingly linked to strong cost pressures.
“Service providers retain an upbeat view of overall business prospects for the next 12 months, but the direction of travel is expected to be slow and steady over the course of 2018 which fails to excite anyone looking for greater returns,” Duncan Brock, Director of Customer Relationships at the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, said.
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