UK services sector continued to hire throughout December

RA Now

Rising workloads throughout December led to companies in the services sector increasing their payroll numbers at a marked pace, the first Markit/CIPS UK Services Purchasing Managers’ Index of 2014 has revealed.

Employment rose at a sharp pace for a twelfth successive month in December, and confidence was at its highest level among the members of the survey panel for the first time since March 2010. Further growth is expected in 2014.

While the business activity index registered a seasonally adjusted level of 58.5, down from 60.0 the previous month, this signals a historically strong rate of expansion and represents continued growth throughout 2013.

“Service providers ended 2013 in a buoyant mood,” Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit, said. “Although the growth of activity slowed, it’s come down from super-strong levels and the pace of expansion remains elevated.”

“Combined with the still-strong growth in manufacturing and services, the PMI surveys suggest that the pace of economic growth will have accelerated in the fourth quarter from the 0.8% expansion seen in the third quarter,” he added.

If the buoyancy recorded in the PMIs is borne out by official data, the economy will have grown by 1.9% in 2013, Williamson added.

David Noble, CEO at CIPS, added: “New orders and backlogs rose firmly in the final month and will be leading the growth in activity at the start of the year. To sustain this expansion, firms have sought to increase staffing numbers for a twelfth consecutive month.”