May data highlighted a renewed slowdown in business activity growth across the UK service economy, following the four-month peak achieved in April. This partly reflected a softer pace of new order growth, which survey respondents linked to squeezed household budgets and, in some cases, delayed decision making among clients ahead of the General Election. There were positive developments in terms of cost pressures during May, with the latest survey pointing to the least marked rise in input prices since September 2016. This resulted in a moderation in output charge inflation from April's near-nine year peak.

The headline seasonally adjusted IHS Markit/CIPS Services PMI Business Activity Index registered 53.8 in May, to remain above the 50.0 no-change value for the tenth consecutive month. However, the index dropped from 55.8 in April and signalled the slowest expansion of service sector output since February. Anecdotal evidence from survey respondents mainly cited weaker new business growth in May.