Sweden Services Sector Growth Picks Up in August

2026-09-03 06:54 By Judith Sib-at 1 min. read

The Services PMI in Sweden rose to 55.8 in August 2026 from a revised 54.3 in July and was above the average for the first eight months of the year (54.1).

All sub-indices increased during the month, with business volume making the largest positive contribution to the rise in the services PMI, rising to 57.5 from 54.2 in July.

This was followed by order intake (56.2 vs 55.8), employment (47.9 vs 46.2), and delivery times (60.9 vs 60.1).

Cost pressures also eased further, as the index for raw and intermediate goods prices fell to 61.6, the lowest in six months, from 66.4 in July.

“The service sector strengthened in August, with a clear increase in business volume.

However, service companies are still holding off on hiring new employees, and perhaps we need a longer period of stronger service-sector activity before employment picks up,” said Jörgen Kennemar, responsible for the PMI analysis.

Meanwhile, the Composite PMI increased to 55.9 in August from 54.7 in the previous month.



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Sweden Services Sector Growth Picks Up in August
The Services PMI in Sweden rose to 55.8 in August 2026 from a revised 54.3 in July and was above the average for the first eight months of the year (54.1). All sub-indices increased during the month, with business volume making the largest positive contribution to the rise in the services PMI, rising to 57.5 from 54.2 in July. This was followed by order intake (56.2 vs 55.8), employment (47.9 vs 46.2), and delivery times (60.9 vs 60.1). Cost pressures also eased further, as the index for raw and intermediate goods prices fell to 61.6, the lowest in six months, from 66.4 in July. “The service sector strengthened in August, with a clear increase in business volume. However, service companies are still holding off on hiring new employees, and perhaps we need a longer period of stronger service-sector activity before employment picks up,” said Jörgen Kennemar, responsible for the PMI analysis. Meanwhile, the Composite PMI increased to 55.9 in August from 54.7 in the previous month.
2026-09-03
Sweden Services Sector Growth Loses Steam in July
The Services PMI in Sweden fell to 54.2 in July 2026 from a revised 56.5 in June, which had marked the highest level since November 2025. Despite the decline, the latest reading remained above the average for the first seven months of the year (53.7). All sub-indices weakened, with the delivery times sub-index making the largest negative contribution to the PMI, falling to 60.1 from 64.9 in June, followed by new orders (55.8 vs 57.6) and business volume (54.0 vs 55.2). The employment index declined to a new annual low of 45.9 from 47.7 in the previous month. Cost pressures continued to ease significantly, with the raw and intermediate goods price index dropping to 65.5 from 75.1 in June. Its 17-point decline over the past two months was the largest in the index's 21-year history. Meanwhile, the Composite PMI fell to 54.7 in July from a seven-month high of 56.9 in June.
2026-08-05
Sweden Services Activity Growth Hits 7-Month High
The Services PMI in Sweden increased to 56.6 in June 2026 from an upwardly revised 54.2 in May. The reading was the highest since November 2025 and exceeded its historical average of 55.6 for only the second time this year. The business volume sub-index made the largest contribution to the increase in the PMI, rising back to 55.3 from 49.1 in May, followed by the new orders index, which climbed to 57.5 from 54.3. However, the employment sub-index edged down to 48.0 from 48.8, remaining below the 50 threshold for the ninth consecutive month, suggesting that companies continue to hold off on hiring. Cost pressures in the services sector also eased in June, with the raw and intermediate goods price index falling to 76.3 from 81.8 in May, though it remained well above its historical average of 58.3. Meanwhile, the Composite PMI rose to 57.1 in June from 55.1 in May, marking the highest level in seven months.
2026-07-03