Swedish Services Growth Improves In May

(RTTNews) - The Swedish service sector growth rebounded somewhat in May, though it remained below its historical average, survey results from Swedbank and the logistics association Silf showed on Wednesday.

The purchasing managers' index, or PMI, for the services sector rose to 53.9 in May from 52.6 in April. A score above 50 indicates expansion in the sector. Nonetheless, the reading stayed below its historical average of 55.6 for the second straight month.

Among components, the sub-index for new orders made the largest positive contribution to the increase in PMI services, followed by employment and delivery times, while business volume declined. 

"The recovery in the services sector is slow and shows a shaky development," Swedbank analyst Jorgen Kennemar said.

"Since the end of last year, the services economy has lost momentum, and even though the index is in the growth zone, the level of activity is probably insufficient to lead to more new jobs in the sector."

Cost pressures intensified in May, with the index for raw and intermediate goods prices rising to 80.1 from 73.1 in April. Moreover, the cost inflation was the highest level since 2022.

The composite output index climbed to 54.9 in May from 53.9 in April, signalling an acceleration in the recovery of the Swedish business sector.