TEMPE, Ariz., Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Business activity in the U.S. service industries sector grew marginally in January, an industry group said Wednesday.
The Institute for Supply Management said its headline index in the non-manufacturing sector rose 0.7 percentage points to 50.5. Above 50 indicates growth, while contractions are shown by numbers below 50.
Activity for services businesses shrank slightly a month ago with the index at 49.8.
The new orders index, at 54.7, showed growth, but employment showed contraction at 44.6.
Economists predicted better results, forecasting the headline index, called the Purchasing Managers Index, would hit 51.5 in January.
Earlier Wednesday, Automatic Data Processing Inc., a payroll firm that issues a monthly report on jobs, said the service sector added 38,000 jobs December to January, the second consecutive month with job gains.
