U.S. Services PMI Rises to 55.4 in August as Prices Hit 72.6 and Employment Stays Below 50
Updated
Updated · PR Newswire · Sep 3
U.S. Services PMI Rises to 55.4 in August as Prices Hit 72.6 and Employment Stays Below 50
3 articles · Updated · PR Newswire · Sep 3
Summary
August’s ISM Services PMI rose 1.3 points to 55.4, marking a 26th straight month of expansion and indicating the overall U.S. economy is still growing.
Business activity climbed to 61.7 and new orders to 60.9 — both multiyear highs — while backlog growth accelerated to 55.6, pointing to strong demand across the sector.
Employment remained in contraction at 47.8 for a second month, even as the share of firms cutting staff eased to 17.1% from 19% in July.
Prices paid jumped to 72.6, the highest since August 2022, with respondents citing tariffs, Middle East conflict and higher fuel and petroleum-related costs.
Twelve industries reported growth and ISM said the August reading is consistent with a 2.3-percentage-point annualized increase in real GDP.