Service sector expanded at much slower pace

Associated Press//May 4, 2011//

WASHINGTON — The US service sector, which employs nearly 90 percent of the nation’s work force, grew for the 17th straight month in April, though at the slowest pace since August.

The Institute for Supply Management, a private trade group of purchasing executives, says its index of service-sector business activity dropped to 52.8 last month. That’s down from 57.3 in March and a five-year high of 59.7 in February. Any reading over 50 indicates expansion.

The index covers a range of industries, including retail, health care, financial services and construction. It plummeted to 37.6 in November 2008, at the height of the financial crisis. The sector contracted for all but three months in 2009. A measure of employment fell for the second straight month.

Tags: financial services, institute for supply management, service, service sector, work force, Business, august, construction, Economy

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