LONDON, June 4 (Xinhua) -- British services sector saw a mild growth in May from the record-low performance in April, according to data released Wednesday by S&P Global.
The S&P Global UK Services Purchasing Managers Business Activity Index stood at 50.9 in May, up from April's 27-month-low reading of 49, the company said, noting that the growth was only marginal and much weaker than the long-run survey average.
Service providers attributed the increase in business activity mainly to improved business optimism after the U.S. tariff-related dive seen in April, along with other factors including resilient consumer confidence, new marketing initiatives and competitive pricing strategies.
"Output growth expectations for the year ahead also rebounded after April's tariff-related slump. Optimism reached its highest level since October 2024, which reflected forthcoming business investment plans alongside hopes of a turnaround in sales pipelines and improving domestic economic prospects," said Tim Moore, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
But the data underlined decline in new order intakes across the service economy due to lacklustre demand conditions in both domestic and overseas markets, despite a boost to client confidence from the rollback of US tariffs.
Employers in the sector have been reducing jobs in each of the past eight months, affected by rising payroll costs, the S&P Global added.
Wednesday's data also showed that the S&P Global UK PMI Composite Output Index came in at 50.3 in May, up from 48.5 in April. The figure was still the second-lowest since October 2023 as higher levels of services sector output contrasted with a solid reduction in manufacturing production. ■
