BENGALURU: Activity in India’s dominant services industry, expanded for the first time in eight months in October as demand surged, but pandemic-hit firms continued to cut jobs, a private survey showed on Wednesday.
The findings, coupled with a similar survey on Monday which found Indian manufacturing growth expanded at its fastest pace in over a decade, suggest a recovery in Asia’s third-largest economy is under way.
The Nikkei/IHS Markit Services Purchasing Managers’ Index climbed to 54.1 in October from September’s 49.8.
It was the highest reading since February and comfortably above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction.
“It’s encouraging to see the Indian service sector joining its manufacturing counterpart and posting a recovery in economic conditions from the steep deteriorations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic earlier in the year,” Pollyanna De Lima, economics associate director at IHS Markit, said in a release.
“Service providers signalled solid expansions in new work and business activity during October. They were also more upbeat about the outlook, though hopes of output growth in the year ahead were pinned on a COVID-19 vaccine.”
A sub-index tracking overall demand showed it expanded for the first time since February but new export business remained firmly in contraction territory as restrictions imposed across the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic hammered foreign demand.
— Reuters
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
