TOKYO: Japan's services sector activity shrank for the first time in five months in August as a resurgence of COVID-19 infections hurt demand, a business survey showed. The contraction shows that a recovery of the world's third-largest economy remains fragile at best and is worrying at a time when the glob
TOKYO: Japan's services sector activity shrank for the first time in five months in August as a resurgence of COVID-19 infections hurt demand, a business survey showed.
The final au Jibun Bank Japan Services purchasing managers' index dropped to a seasonally adjusted 49.5, marking the first contraction since March. "A renewed drop in services activity accompanied a further drop in manufacturing production, with the latter falling at the quickest pace since September 2021," said Annabel Fiddes, economics associate director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, which compiles the survey.
Average cost burdens faced by services firms expanded at a marked pace in August due to hikes in energy, fuel and raw material costs, while firms continued to raise their fees modestly.
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