Russian Services Activity Expands Least In 15 Months

(RTTNews) - The Russian services activity grew at the weakest pace in more than a year in April amid softer demand conditions, survey results from S&P Global showed on Monday.

The services purchasing managers' index, or PMI, dropped to 50.5 in April from 51.4 in March. However, a reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.

Further, this was the weakest upturn in output in the current 15-month sequence of growth.

The rise in new orders was only modest and the weakest in the current sequence of expansion that began in February 2023.

On the price front, input price inflation moderated to the second-lowest since July 2020. As a result, selling price inflation also eased to the slowest since early 2021.

Despite a slower rise in sales demand, firms continued to raise workforce numbers in April. Companies anticipated higher output in the upcoming year, though their level of optimism fell to a nine-month low.

The composite output index fell to 51.9 in April from 52.7 in March, signalling the weakest growth in private sector activity in fifteen months.