Skip to main content
The Actuary: The magazine of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries - return to the homepage Logo of The Actuary website
  • Search
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on LinkedIn
  • Visit @TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Visit the website of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries Logo of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries

Main navigation

  • News
  • Features
    • General Features
    • Interviews
    • Students
    • Opinion
  • Topics
  • Knowledge
    • Business Skills
    • Careers
    • Events
    • Predictions by The Actuary
    • Whitepapers
    • Moody's - Climate Risk Insurers series
    • Webinars
    • Podcasts
  • Jobs
  • IFoA
    • CEO Comment
    • IFoA News
    • People & Social News
    • President Comment
  • Archive
Quick links:
  • Home
  • The Actuary Issues
  • May 2017
05

UK service sector growth hit four-month high in April 2017

Open-access content Friday 5th May 2017 — updated 5.50pm, Wednesday 29th April 2020

The UK’s service sector experienced its sharpest rise in business activity recorded since December 2016 last month, supported by the fastest upturn in new work so far this year.

2

This was linked to resilient business-to-business demand, new product launches and a rise in sales to overseas clients, while job creation also picked up to a four-month high.

These were the main findings from the Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers' Index, released yesterday, which reveals four times as many service providers are confident about growth this year than those who are not.

"The UK's biggest sector started Q2 in stellar fashion, with the strongest performance so far this year and with new business growth riding high," CIPS director of customer relationships, Duncan Brock, said.

"A supportive economic backdrop helped to boost the UK service sector, with resilient demand reported both at home and from abroad.

"Going full steam ahead with staff hires rising at one of the fastest rates since last summer relieved capacity pressures, and provides a signal that service providers anticipate additional growth in the coming months."

Despite increased business activity, average prices charged by services firms increased at the fastest pace recorded since July 2008, due to a strong rise in input costs, mostly linked to utility bills, salary payments and food prices.

These inflationary pressures resulted in subdued consumer spending, with anecdotal evidence suggesting increased business-to-business sales helped to offset this, although this is not expected to be sustainable.

"The driver of growth came primarily from business clients, as consumers took a back seat, uneasy about rising costs for essentials such as food, fuel and energy," Brock continued.

"As prices and supply chain pressures will be the focus for business in the coming months, it is the consumer who will make or break the sector's progress if the political headwinds are favourable, disposable incomes improve and the pound's lacklustre performance improves."

The growth in the service sector rounds off a hat-trick of positive results from Markit/CIPS this week, with construction also found to have hit a four-month high in April, while manufacturing increased to its highest level in three years.


Sign up to our free newsletter here and receive a weekly roundup of news concerning the actuarial profession

This article appeared in our May 2017 issue of The Actuary .
Click here to view this issue

You may also be interested in...

2

Clean air zones proposed to tackle 'illegal' pollution levels

The UK government has set out a list of proposals to tackle nitrogen dioxide (NO2) emissions in its air quality consultation paper released today.
Friday 5th May 2017
Open-access content
2

UK reducing CO2 emissions more than 10 times faster than rest of EU combined

The UK’s CO2 emissions from energy use fell by 4.8% last year, in comparison with a 0.4% decrease for the EU as a whole, according to estimates from Eurostat released today.
Thursday 4th May 2017
Open-access content
2

Life expectancy changes could see UK pension deficit cut by £310bn

A slowdown in improving life expectancy may result in £310bn being wiped from the UK’s collective defined benefit (DB) pension deficit, according to analysis by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
Thursday 4th May 2017
Open-access content
2

Continued investment in cash ISAs leaving billions at risk

Billions of pounds are at risk as investment in cash individual savings accounts (ISAs) continues to soar, according to analysis from Royal London.
Wednesday 3rd May 2017
Open-access content
2

More than three quarters of employees want greater financial education

Some 76% of employees believe improved financial education at work would significantly help them cope with life issues like planning for retirement, according to research by Capita Employee Benefits.
Wednesday 3rd May 2017
Open-access content
2

Triple lock gives pensioners just £2 extra per week

The triple lock will provide just £2.04 more income per week to pensioners in 2017-18 than it would if the double lock was used, and £7.02 more than it would if increases were based solely on price inflation.
Wednesday 3rd May 2017
Open-access content

Latest from May 2017

2

Calls for social care fees to be capped at £60,000

Nine in ten people aged over 50 in the UK believe there should be a social care fee cap after PM Theresa May proposed to continue to charge anyone with more than £100,000.
Tuesday 6th June 2017
Open-access content
2

Service sector growth stalls but UK economy 'gains momentum'

The UK service sector experienced a slowdown in growth last month after hitting a four-month peak in April, according to the IHS Markit/CIPS UK Services PMI survey.
Tuesday 6th June 2017
Open-access content
2

Employees leaving UK businesses at risk of cyber attacks

Almost half of UK employees had just 30 minutes or less of cyber security training last year, and the same amount believe opening any email on their work computer is safe.
Tuesday 6th June 2017
Open-access content

Latest from small_opening_image

2

COVID-19 forum for actuaries launched

A forum for actuaries has been launched to help the profession come together and learn how best to respond to the deadly coronavirus sweeping the world.
Wednesday 25th March 2020
Open-access content
2

Travel insurers expect record payouts this year

UK travel insurers expect to pay a record £275m to customers this year as coronavirus grounds flights across the world, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) has revealed.
Wednesday 25th March 2020
Open-access content
2

Grim economic forecasts made as countries lockdown

A sharp recession is imminent in the vast majority of developed and emerging economies as the deadly coronavirus forces businesses to shut down across the world.
Tuesday 24th March 2020
Open-access content

Latest from inline_local_link

2

COVID-19 forum for actuaries launched

A forum for actuaries has been launched to help the profession come together and learn how best to respond to the deadly coronavirus sweeping the world.
Wednesday 25th March 2020
Open-access content
2

Travel insurers expect record payouts this year

UK travel insurers expect to pay a record £275m to customers this year as coronavirus grounds flights across the world, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) has revealed.
Wednesday 25th March 2020
Open-access content
2

Grim economic forecasts made as countries lockdown

A sharp recession is imminent in the vast majority of developed and emerging economies as the deadly coronavirus forces businesses to shut down across the world.
Tuesday 24th March 2020
Open-access content

Latest from 05

2

Calls for social care fees to be capped at £60,000

Nine in ten people aged over 50 in the UK believe there should be a social care fee cap after PM Theresa May proposed to continue to charge anyone with more than £100,000.
Tuesday 6th June 2017
Open-access content
2

Service sector growth stalls but UK economy 'gains momentum'

The UK service sector experienced a slowdown in growth last month after hitting a four-month peak in April, according to the IHS Markit/CIPS UK Services PMI survey.
Tuesday 6th June 2017
Open-access content
2

Employees leaving UK businesses at risk of cyber attacks

Almost half of UK employees had just 30 minutes or less of cyber security training last year, and the same amount believe opening any email on their work computer is safe.
Tuesday 6th June 2017
Open-access content
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Latest Jobs

Exposure Management Analyst

London, England
£40000 - £50000 per annum
Reference
148639

Pricing - Casualty Actuary

London (Central)
£128K + bonus + benefits
Reference
148638

Reporting Contractor

Negotiable
Reference
148636
See all jobs »
 
 
 
 

Sign up to our newsletter

News, jobs and updates

Sign up

Subscribe to The Actuary

Receive the print edition straight to your door

Subscribe
Spread-iPad-slantB-june.png

Topics

  • Data Science
  • Investment
  • Risk & ERM
  • Pensions
  • Environment
  • Soft skills
  • General Insurance
  • Regulation Standards
  • Health care
  • Technology
  • Reinsurance
  • Global
  • Life insurance
​
FOLLOW US
The Actuary on LinkedIn
@TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Facebook: The Actuary Magazine
CONTACT US
The Actuary
Tel: (+44) 020 7880 6200
​

IFoA

About IFoA
Become an actuary
IFoA Events
About membership

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy
Think Green

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to The Actuary Magazine
Contribute

The Actuary Jobs

Actuarial job search
Pensions jobs
General insurance jobs
Solvency II jobs

© 2023 The Actuary. The Actuary is published on behalf of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries by Redactive Publishing Limited. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part is not allowed without written permission.

Redactive Media Group Ltd, 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ