A monthly survey by Nikkei purchasing managers’ index on Thursday showed that Services sector, the largest sector of the Indian economy, is growing with slower pace. Growth rate of the services fell to six-month low in March 2019. Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index PMI fell to 52 in March from 52.5, indicating slowest expansion since last September.
Readings above 50 points indicate expansion while those below 50 signal contraction.
This affected jobs as hiring activity by services companies also hit a six-month bottom, with 94 per cent firms not even employing a single additional hand in this month.
Despite the moderation, the services PMI was in the expansion territory for the 10th straight month. In PMI parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction.
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Separate PMI data for manufacturing, issued a couple of days back, showed that factory activities also grew at a six-month low in March. As such, the composite PMI output index, that maps the private sector activities, dipped from 53.8 in February to a six-month low of 52.7 in March.
It is worth mentioning that the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) is an indicator of economic health for manufacturing and service sectors. The purpose of the PMI is to provide information about current business conditions to company decision makers, analysts and purchasing managers.
