Growth in activity in the United States services industry eased in March, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported on Wednesday. The ISM Services Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) landed at 51.4%, down 1.2 percentage points from February’s 52.6%.
The Business Activity index increased by 0.2 percentage points to 57.4%, while the Employment index expanded by 0.5 percentage points to 48.5%. However, the Prices index was down 5.2 percentage points to 53.4% and the New Orders index declined 1.7 percentage points to 54.4%.
“The decrease in the rate of growth in March and the decline in the composite index is a result of slower new orders growth, faster supplier deliveries and a contraction in employment. The report continued to reflect growth month over month,” ISM Services Business Survey Committee Chair Anthony Nieves noted.