UK service providers signalled another increase in business activity during October, but the rate of expansion eased to its weakest since the snowrelated soft patch seen in March. The loss of momentum largely reflected more cautious spending patterns among clients, as highlighted by the weakest upturn in new work since July 2016.

The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit/CIPS UK Services PMI Business Activity Index dropped to 52.2 in October from 53.9 in September, to signal the slowest rate of business activity expansion since March. The headline index has posted above the 50.0 no-change value in each of the past 27 months, but the latest reading was the secondlowest since July 2016. Survey respondents noted that heightened economic uncertainty and a soft patch for new work had held back business activity growth.