Russia's services PMI rises to 44.4 in April

ANKARA

The S&P Global Russia services PMI rose to 44.4 in April from March's 22-month low, according to data released on Friday.

Russian service providers highlighted that output fell due to weaker demand conditions and decrease in new orders as sanctions cut customer purchasing power, the S&P said.

Despite the slowdown in the pace of contraction in business activity from a month ago, it was the second steepest since May 2020.

The introduction of sanctions also pushed input prices up, with the rate of cost inflation the second-fastest on record.

Moreover, services firms remained pessimistic for the 12-month outlook, contributing to a further drop in employment amid efforts to cut costs.