Latest data released by Markit/CIPS - 5 July 2021
- Composite PMI 62.2 vs 61.7 prelim
The preliminary report can be found here. Although a little lower compared to May, UK economic conditions are still reaffirming a strong recovery with business activity near the 24-year high in May.
The downside is that cost inflation hit a record high in June amid supply chain disruptions and that could be a force that threatens to destabilise the recovery in general.
Markit notes that:
"The service sector recovery remained in full swing during June as looser pandemic restrictions released pent up demand for business and consumer services. Sales growth eased slightly from May's recent peak, but capacity constraints and staff shortages meant that many service providers struggled to keep up with new orders.
"Backlogs of work increased at a faster pace than any other time since the survey began in July 1996, despite job creation reaching a seven-year high. Difficulties filling staff vacancies were reported by survey respondents in all parts of the service economy during June, with hospitality and leisure experiencing the greatest squeeze.
"Staff shortages and delays among suppliers were by far the most commonly cited constraints on growth in June. International travel restrictions, especially uncertainty about quarantine polices at home and abroad, were also a prominent source of anxiety. These disruptions to inbound and outbound travel contributed to another slight dip in export sales, which stood in sharp contrast to resurgent domestic demand.
"The latest survey data highlighted survey-record rates of input cost and prices charged inflation across the service sector, reflecting higher commodity prices, transport shortages and staff wages. Imbalanced supply and demand was the main driver, while the roll-back of pandemic discounting by some service providers amplified the latest round of price hikes."
