Service industries: Economic indicators

Economic indicators are quick-read summaries of the latest data focusing on different aspects of the UK economy. The full suite of indicators can be found on the main Economic Indicators page.

The service industries include the retail sector, the financial sector, the public sector, business administration, leisure and cultural activities.

The service industries accounted for 81% of total UK economic output (gross value added) and 83% of employment in October to December 2024.

Services Output 

There was an increase of 0.3% in the Index of Services between January and February 2025.

Services output increased by 0.6% in December 2024 to February 2025 compared with September to November 2024.

In December 2024 to February 2025, compared with December 2023 to February 2024, services output increased by 1.8%.

Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI)

In the S&P Global/CIPS PMI, a value of 50 means that there is no change in activity compared to the previous month. Values above 50 indicate an expansion, and values below 50 a contraction.

The UK services PMI (PDF) in the flash estimate for April 2025 was 48.9, down from 52.5 in March. This was the first time since October 2023 that activity has contracted, with survey respondents largely attributing the change to global economic uncertainty, particularly the new tariffs introduced by the US. Business from abroad fell sharply. Staffing numbers were also down, as were expectations of future business activity.

Next updates

This page is updated when new data is published. The next source updates will be:

• ONS, Index of Services, 15 May 2025

• S&P Global/CIPS, UK Services PMI, 6 May 2025