03.04.201904:59:00UTC+00UK Service Sector Shrinks For First Time Since July 2016

UK service sector shrunk for the first time in over two-and-a-half years in March as domestic political uncertainty damped demand amid labor shortages, survey data from IHS Markit showed on Wednesday.

The CIPS/IHS Markit services purchasing managers' index, or PMI fell to 48.9 in March from 51.3 in February. Economists had expected a score of 51.

A reading below 50 suggests contraction in the sector. The services PMI reading fell below 50 for the first time since July 2016.

Aside from the brief dip seen after the EU referendum, the latest reading was the joint weakest seen over the past decade and equaled the previous low point recorded in December 2012, IHS Markit said.

The composite PMI dropped to 50 in March from 51.4 in February. Economists were looking for a score of 51.2.