The latest report by S&P Global revealed the seasonally
adjusted final S&P Global U.S. Services Business Activity Index (PMI) came
in at 55.0 in July, slightly down from 55.3 in June and below the earlier released “flash” estimate of 56.0.
The July reading indicated that the activity in the U.S.
services sector expanded for the 18th straight month, albeit at a slightly
softer pace than in June.
Economists
had expected the indicator to remain unrevised at 56.0.
According
to the report, the strong performance of US service providers in July was due to a rise
in new orders. In addition, the solid growth of new business encouraged services providers to take on extra staff, as did positive expectations for the future.
On the price front, the pace of input cost inflation quickened to a four-month
high, while the charge inflation eased for the second month running to the slowest
since January.