JAPAN:

  • Markit/JMMA Japan Services PMI for August: 49.9 (prior was 50.4)
  • Markit/JMMA Japan Composite PMI for August: 50.8 (prior was 50.2)

Key points:

  • New business growth at service providers sustained for third month in a row
  • Payroll numbers remain in growth territory

Amy Brownbill, Economist at Markit, which compiles the survey:

  • “Latest PMI data indicated a fall in business activity for Japanese services, although at only a slight pace.
  • New business growth, on the other hand, was sustained for a third month in a row.
  • Furthermore, job creation remained in growth territory amid reports of planned company expansions.
  • “Therefore, it would seem that the performance of the Japanese service sector will return to positive growth in the near future as the negative effects of the sales tax increase dissipate.”