S&P Global reported Wednesday that the U.K. composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) fell to 49.6 in August 2022, below the preliminary reading of 50.9, a clear sign of recession.
The PMI index below 50 indicates that the manufacturing and service sectors in the UK are contracting. This was the first decline since February 2021, when UK businesses were hit by the second COVID-19 wave, which led to a standstill in late 2020 to early 2021.
The final service sector PMI for the UK was revised downward from 52.5 to 50.9 in August.