subject: Services Growth Helps United Kingdom Economy [print this page] Economists expect consumers increased spending help inflation to fall. There is a fell to 53.8 from 56.0 in January recorded by the Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers' Index for services, which had been a 10-month peak. The latest reading was below forecasts for a dip to 54.9, but stayed well above the 50 mark which separates growth from contraction. This is combined with evidence of growth in manufacturing and construction, the figures go some way to create pressure on the government as Britain's leading business lobbies demand measures to support the tentative economic rebound in the budget statement due later this month.
According to a business survey, in February, there is an expansion in Britain's dominant service sector which is less than the expectation, but the economy still looks on track for a modest growth in the first three months of this year after shrinking at the end of 2011. Service firms are confident about the year ahead will hit the highest level in this year, with more than half of respondents showing optimism versus only a 10th who were disagreed. Employment is also ticked up in the sector.
Alan Clarke, a Scotia bank economist said that at a pace of 54, it is still a decent rate of expansion for the biggest share of GDP output. The fact that when companies' business expectations rose, it also raises hopes that this isn't the start of a down trend. Economists said that the combined surveys pointed to economic growth in the first quarter, with some putting it at about 0.4 percent quarter-on-quarter after a 0.2 percent contraction in the last three months of last year. The Federation of Small Businesses called on finance minister George Osborne to set up a separate government body to defend the interests of Britain's 4.5 million small firms. It said the agency would allow a quick implementation of policies such as credit easing, announced in November to increase small and medium-sized enterprises' access to finance. Need cash in this economic slump apply with 12 month loans and get required cash with very simple procedure.
The PMI surveys support the Bank of England's prediction that Britain faces a bumpy ride to recovery. According to the given recent signs of economic resilience where most economists expect the central bank to keep the target for its asset purchases unchanged at 325 billion pounds at its policy meeting. Increased activity in the services sector was due partly to discounting, although growth in new business still slowed.
