Japan October services PMI 49.7 (preliminary was 49.3)

Japan Jibun Bank / S&P Global Services PMI (October) 49.7

• flash was 49.3

• prior was 53.1

Composite 49.6

• prior 52.0

The report notes that momentum in Japan’s service sector faltered sharply at the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2024, as companies experienced their first contraction in four months. Although the decline was slight, it coincided with a slowdown in overall new business inflows, heavily impacted by a significant drop in exports.

Businesses remained hopeful that this dip was temporary, maintaining a positive outlook overall. However, optimism was at its lowest in over two and a half years, influenced by growing concerns over labor shortages.

Alongside a steadily shrinking manufacturing sector, October’s decline in service output led to the first contraction in private sector activity since June, marking the most significant drop in nearly a year. Further adding to this concern was stagnant new orders, affected by weak demand in manufacturing.

Overall confidence in the private sector’s performance also slipped, with positive sentiment at its lowest level since January 2021.

more to come

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at www.forexlive.com.