Germany's service sector experienced a further slowdown in May, with business activity rising at the weakest rate for 20 months. New orders increased only modestly, while the pace of job creation eased to the slowest seen in over two years. Inflationary pressures meanwhile picked up, driven by an acceleration in the rate of input cost inflation in the sector. May saw the seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Germany Services PMI Business Activity Index fall from 53.0 in April to 52.1, its lowest reading since September 2016.