UK services PMI drops on world economy concern

Britain’s recovery is losing steam as worries about the world economy grow, consumers curb spending, and manufacturing sector weakness spreads, said the authors of a closely watched business survey yesterday.

The Markit/CIPS all-sector purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for Britain fell to 53.9 in September, its lowest in two and a half years, led by a slowdown in the services sector that was sharper than any economist had expected in a Reuters poll.

Markit said its surveys pointed to quarterly economic growth dropping from an above-average 0.7% in the three months to June to 0.5% in the three months to September.