Japan Services Activity Decline Moderates Slightly

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Markit Economics reported on Tuesday that the Japan Nomura services purchasing managers' index stood at a seasonally adjusted 43.4 in January, up from 42.7 in the previous month. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while one below suggests contraction.

Services output declined at a slower pace in January, while the level of new work placed at Japanese service providers fell again in December. Although the pace of reduction in new orders was solid, it was the least marked since August 2009.

Employment levels in the services sector fell for the eighteenth straight month and the rate of decline was the fastest since March 2009. Panelists cited cost cutting measures and reduced workloads as contributory factors for the latest round of job shedding.

Meanwhile, the Nomura composite output index, which is a weighted average of the manufacturing output index and the services business activity index, rose to a three-month high of 46.8 in January.

Markit Economics reported on Tuesday that the Japan Nomura services purchasing managers' index stood at a seasonally adjusted 43.4 in January, up from 42.7 in the previous month. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while one below suggests contraction. (Market News Provided by RTTNews)