United Kingdom: Composite PMI eases in September on softer services activity
The S&P Global/CIPS Flash Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 46.8 in September from August’s 48.6. September’s result marked the worst reading since January 2021. As a result, the index fell further below the 50.0 no-change threshold, signaling a sharper deterioration in private sector operating conditions compared to the previous month.
The Manufacturing PMI stood at 44.2 in September, up from August’s 43.0, while the Services PMI fell to 47.2 in September (August: 49.5). PMI survey respondents highlighted cost-of-living pressures, higher borrowing costs, cutbacks to spending among clients in the real estate and construction sectors and customer destocking as factors holding back activity. Moreover, services firms saw a fall in export orders, while employment fell across both the manufacturing and services sectors. More positively, both input and output cost inflation were the slowest since early 2021.