FX.co ★ Canada's Services PMI Improves in March

Canada’s S&P Global Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 47.2 in March from 46.5 in February — its highest level in five months — but still signaled a solid decline in overall activity. New business continued to fall, although the pace of contraction slowed to its weakest in five months. The war in the Middle East directly pushed up operating costs, driving input price inflation to a nine-month high. In response, firms increased their selling prices at a faster rate than in recent months. Wage costs also rose, even as companies, on average, reduced their staffing levels. Employment declined for the seventh consecutive month, though only slightly and at the softest pace seen in the current downturn. Looking ahead, service providers expressed greater optimism about future conditions, with business sentiment climbing to its strongest level in six months.