FX.co ★ Australia Services PMI Expansion Accelerates in October

The S&P Global Flash Australia Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 53.1 in October, up from 52.4 in September, signaling accelerated expansion within the service sector. This growth was primarily attributed to an increase in new business inflows. However, the pace of growth in new orders and employment decelerated compared to earlier months. Strengthening export demand for services helped mitigate some of the weaknesses in the manufacturing sector, thereby stabilizing the overall new export business. Despite these positives, business confidence among service providers dipped to its lowest level in 11 months. This decline in optimism regarding future output growth was driven by worries about heightened competition and the broader economic climate. On the financial side, input price inflation lessened to its lowest point in almost a year, while the rate at which firms increased their selling prices dropped to a five-year low, as strong market competition limited their capacity to raise charges.