S&P Global: Russia's Services PMI rises to 48.7 in January

MOSCOW, Feb 3 (PRIME) -- Russia's seasonally adjusted Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) increased to 48.7 in January from 45.9 in December, remaining below the 50 no-change mark, which means an overall deterioration, research agency S&P Global said on Friday.

"Russian service providers registered a further contraction in business activity during January, according to the latest PMI data. Although only marginal and slower than in December, the decrease in output stemmed from another monthly drop in new business amid weak domestic and international demand," the researchers said.

At the same time, businesspeople were positive about the future in the reporting period after a negative sentiment in December. The hopes were linked with new orders after spending on advertisement, appearance of new customers and higher new product investments.

Russia's Composite PMI Output Index stood at 49.7 in January after 48.0 in December. The decline in the services sector offset an expansion of the manufacturing one.

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