Activity in the U.S. services sector expanded in September for the third consecutive month, registering its best monthly performance in more than a year, but shrinking employment and persistent price pressures lurked in the background.
The Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) Services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI)—a gauge of the general direction of economic trends in the services industry—rose to 54.9 in September, the highest level since February 2023.
