- Prior 55.8
Spanish services activity contracts for the first time in 11 months in January, with soaring number of infections amid the omicron wave being the main drag on the economy. The positives from the report are that employment growth was sustained and that optimism about the outlook remained positive - reaffirming that the omicron drag is likely to prove temporary. Markit notes that:
“Spain’s services economy endured a challenging month in the face of a strong COVID-19 Omicron headwind, with both activity and new business declining since the end of 2021.
“Mixed in with the Omicron challenge however were reports of growing uncertainty in the marketplace, with rapid inflation rates causing some concerns for service providers and their clients.
“However, perhaps reflective of hopes that setbacks at the start of the year will in time prove to be transitory, employment growth was sustained, whilst the mediumterm outlook is widely seen to be positive.”
