Output from the Republic’s services sector increased sharply in April from the same month last year, provisional figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) reveal, with both prices and volumes increasing year-on-year.
Based on a sample of around 2,250 businesses, the CSO’s monthly services index shows the value of turnover increased by 9 per cent in the year to the end of April as prices continued to rise generally across the economy. The annual rate of growth picked up from 7.3 per cent in March, the figures show.
The industries with the biggest annual increase in turnover were professional, scientific and technical activities – including legal services, scientific research and engineering activities among others – where output values, measured in current prices, increased 15.1 per cent. The value of output from the information and communication sector, which includes the tech sector, jumped by more than 13 per cent year-on-year.
However, services sector output also increased by 8 per cent in terms of volumes, indicating expanding activity.
Information and communication businesses experienced the sharpest pickup in output volumes, climbing 14.3 per cent from April, 2023. Transportation and storage-related services also increased their output volumes over the period, climbing 13.6 per cent over 12 months with growth also observed in the wholesale and retail trade as well as administrative and support services activities.
However, there was an annual decrease of 6 per cent in the volume of output from accommodation and food services activities, the CSO said.
Published last month, AIB’s monthly services sector purchasing managers’ index for April pointed to ongoing challenges facing services businesses amid an uncertain inflationary environment.
“The inflationary picture remains mixed in the sector,” said AIB chief economist David McNamara at the time. “On the input side the rate of inflation eased for a second month running in April, but was still well above the long-run average. Wages and fuel were cited as the main sources of higher costs by respondents in April. Firms also continued to raise prices for customers, with the output price index accelerating on the month.”
However, Mr McNamara said an increase in output prices reflected “strong client demand” for services in April.
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