India, May 3 -- After growing for fifteen consecutive months, U.S. service sector activity unexpectedly contracted in the month of April, according to a report released by the Institute for Supply Management on Friday.
The ISM said its services PMI dipped to 49.4 in April from 51.4 in March, with a reading below 50 indicating contraction. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 52.0.
With the unexpected decrease, the services PMI indicated activity in the sector contracted for the first time since December 2022.
The decline by the headline index partly reflected a notable slowdown in the pace of growth in business activity, as the business activity index slid to 50.9 in April from 57.4 in March.
New order growth also slowed comp...