DUBLIN, May 4 (Reuters) - Growth in the Irish services
sector accelerated sharply again in April to reach its highest
level in almost a year as firms reported a steep increase in new
orders, a survey showed on Thursday.
The AIB S&P Global Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to
58.4, just above the level it was at in February before slipping
to 55.7 in March. The index has stayed above the 50 mark
separating growth from contraction for over two years.
In a positive sign ahead of the summer season, the tourism,
transport and leisure sector expanded for the second successive
month following a period of contraction between August and
February.
However, inflationary pressures remained elevated across the
sector, with businesses reporting upward pressure on costs, in
particular wages.
The sub-index measuring input price growth slowed a touch to
65.9 while prices charged were almost unchanged at 58.5, unlike
a separate PMI survey of manufacturers on Tuesday that found
input prices falling for the first time in almost three years.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; editing by John Stonestreet)
Messaging: padraic.halpin.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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