Growth and the pace of hiring in the U.S. services sector slowed in February, an industry report showed on Wednesday, though industry executives said unusually bad weather was in part to blame for disruptions in economic activity.
Financial data firm Markit said its final service sector purchasing managers’ index dipped to 53.3 in February from 56.7 in January. A reading above 50 signals economic expansion, and the result was better than Markit’s preliminary “flash” reading of 52.7 released last week.
Employers in the service sector, which accounts for about three-quarters of the U.S. labor market, continued to add employees, but at the slowest rate since March 2013. The final employment index came in at 51.9 in February, compared with 54.1 in January.
This winter has been colder than usual, with severe snowstorms affecting large parts of the Northeast, Midwest and Upper Midwest of the country, and the Southeast has experienced unusual ice storms in recent weeks as well. Investors have largely attributed a spate of weak economic releases to the weather, and expect a rebound in growth in the spring.
Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit, said the rate of growth was estimated to have held steady from January when excluding those that cited the weather as a reason for slack demand.
via Reuters
This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.