Russian Service Sector Recovers In August

(RTTNews) - Russia's services activity expanded for the first time in six months in August amid a fresh upturn in news sales, survey results from S&P Global showed on Thursday.

The services purchasing managers' index, or PMI, rose to 51.3 in August from 49.0 in July. A score above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.

New orders showed a renewed increase in August on the back of strengthening demand conditions. Although companies continued to reduce workforce numbers, the rate of job shedding eased to the weakest in three months.

On the price front, input prices inflation moderated and was the joint-weakest in 2026 so far and below the series average. Despite this, the selling price inflation accelerated to a 5-month high.

The latest rise in new sales boosted business expectations for the year ahead in August. The business confidence was the highest since March, also buoyed by planned investment in advertising to grow customer bases.

The composite output index climbed to 50.6 in August from 49.6 in July, signalling a marginal upturn in activity in the Russian private sector.