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The global economy expanded for a nineteenth straight month* in
January, according to the JPMorgan Global PMI™ (compiled by IHS
Markit), although the rate of expansion slowed to an 18-month low
amid rising COVID-19 infections.
Both manufacturing and service sectors remained in expansion but
saw their rates of growth slow markedly, each recording the
smallest monthly improvements since July 2020.
A broad tightening of official measures to restrict the spread
of the virus had been reflected via an increase in IHS Markit's
Global COVID-19 Containment Index for a second month in
January.
In particular, consumer services activity had been hard hit by
the COVID-19 Omicron variant's disruption. Detailed sector data
revealed that the tourism and recreation sector reported the
steepest downturn by far. The added impact from the spread of the
more infectious Omicron variant had also been disruptions towards
both materials and staff, shortages of which were again widely
reported by companies - and to an extent far exceeding any time
prior to the past few months. The indirect impact on prices is also
expected to be continuously felt in the months to come.
Purchasing Managers' Index™ (PMI™) data are compiled by IHS Markit for more than 40 economies worldwide. The monthly data are derived from surveys of senior executives at private sector companies, and are available only via subscription. The PMI dataset features a headline number, which indicates the overall health of an economy, and sub-indices, which provide insights into other key economic drivers such as GDP, inflation, exports, capacity utilization, employment and inventories. The PMI data are used by financial and corporate professionals to better understand where economies and markets are headed, and to uncover opportunities.