UK private sector downsizes workforce amid output decline
Date
9/25/2023 5:42:03 AM
(MENAFN) According to data released by S&P Global on Friday, companies in the UK's private sector have been downsizing their workforce at the fastest rate since the global financial crisis, excluding the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, as output fell in September.
The latest flash S&P Global Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) figure for the UK slipped to 46.8, down from 48.6 in August, and reached a 32-month low. The reading was well below the 50-mark, which separates growth from contraction, and lower than economists expected, S&P said.
“The disappointing PMI survey results for September mean a recession is looking increasingly likely in the UK,” warned Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
“The steep fall in output signaled by the flash PMI data is consistent with GDP contracting at a quarterly rate of over 0.4 percent, with a broad-based downturn gathering momentum to hint at few hopes of any imminent improvement.”
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