Service Sector Economic Activity Slows in February

The just-released Services PMI report from the Institute for Supply Management shows economic activity in the services sector grew in February for the 21st consecutive month.  But that growth was at a slower pace, with the Services PMI at 56.5%, 3.4 percentage points below January’s reading of 59.9 percent. The Business Activity Index registered 55.1 percent, a decrease of 4.8 percentage points compared to the reading of 59.9 percent in January, and the New Orders Index figure of 56.1 percent is 5.6 percentage points lower than the January reading of 61.7 percent.