Italy’s services sector sees slight growth, but demand and employment lag

Published 05/02/2025, 12:22
Italy’s services sector sees slight growth, but demand and employment lag

Investing.com -- Italy’s services sector experienced marginal growth in January, according to a recent survey.

However, the survey also indicated that underlying demand conditions remained weak and employment levels decreased.

The HCOB Global Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for services, which measures the economic health of the services sector, slightly decreased to 50.4 in January from 50.7 in December.

This score is just above the 50 mark, which separates growth from contraction. This result was broadly consistent with the median forecast of 50.5, as predicted by a group of 14 analysts.

The survey also revealed that new business in the services sector declined for the third consecutive month, registering a score of 49.0, a slight drop from the previous 49.1.

Meanwhile, the employment index, which tracks changes in employment levels, fell to 49.0 from 51.3 in December. This indicates a return to negative territory, marking the first time since October that employment levels have decreased.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

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