Quite a disappointment from the UK’s largest sector: services PMI falls to 56.2 points, below 58.5 predicted. This is a significant miss, but still reflects growth. It is the lowest level since May 2013. The composite PMI stands at 56.4 points.
GBP/USD extends its slide, clinging to 1.59, currently holding on to this level. Update: the pair breaks down with the new low standing at 1.5889.
The UK services PMI was expected to tick down from 58.7 in September to 58.5 points.
GBP/USD was on the back foot, trading under 1.5925, suffering from a strengthening US dollar rather than something pound related.
This is the last but certainly not least of Markit’s purchasing managers’ indices. Earlier this week, manufacturing PMI beat expectations and showed some more solid growth, while construction PMI fell from the highs but remains quite high.
Here is how it looks on the chart. As aforementioned, the move began before the publication and is related to general dollar strength across the board.
For more, see the GBPUSD prediction.
