India’s services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 59.8 in November from 58.9 in October. However, Contrary to services, India’s composite PMI output index fell to 59.7 in November from 60.4 in October.
New business drives acceleration in services growth
According to the HSBC India Services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) survey compiled by S&P Global, “Growth of Indian services activity accelerated during November, after losing some momentum in October, boosted by a faster upturn in new business intakes. International sales continued to improve, though here the rate of expansion retreated to an eight-month low.
Employment in the services economy rose modestly for the third straight month. Many firms kept payrolls unchanged, citing adequate capacity and broadly stable outstanding workloads. Backlogs were largely unchanged in November, after a marginal decline in October.
Services outpace manufacturing in November
“India’s private sector economy registered a moderation in growth and softer inflationary pressures halfway through the third fiscal quarter,” the report noted.
New orders continued to rise sharply, although the increase was the weakest in six months. Manufacturing firms reported a slower rise in output and sales, while service sector activity strengthened.
Input cost inflation eased broadly across both manufacturers and service providers. The overall increase in expenses was the smallest in a 64-month period, reflecting a broad-based slowdown in cost pressures. As a result, output price inflation also softened, falling to an eight-month low, with fewer companies raising prices for their goods and services.