US Services Growth Below Forecasts in July

2026-08-05 14:04 By Joana Taborda 1 min. read

The ISM Services PMI in the US edged up to 54.1 in July 2026 from 54 in June, slightly below forecasts of 54.5, while continuing to point to expansion in the services sector.

Business activity (59.1 vs 55.4), new orders (57.2 vs 55.1) and inventories (51.4 vs 51.2) increased faster but employment returned to contraction territory after only one month in expansion (47.4 vs 51.2).

In addition, price pressures increased (70.3 vs 67.7), with petroleum-related products and plastics again reported as commodities up in price, although the number of commodities reported as down in price increased to six, up from three the previous month.

Backlog of orders (50.9 vs 54.9) and supplier deliveries (52.8 vs 54.4) slowed.

“Tariff impacts and the Middle East conflict continued to be mentioned by respondents, but much less frequently than in prior reports.

The World Cup was again cited in the comments regarding increased business activity and new orders”, according to Steve Miller, Chair of the ISM.



News Stream
US Services Growth Below Forecasts in July
The ISM Services PMI in the US edged up to 54.1 in July 2026 from 54 in June, slightly below forecasts of 54.5, while continuing to point to expansion in the services sector. Business activity (59.1 vs 55.4), new orders (57.2 vs 55.1) and inventories (51.4 vs 51.2) increased faster but employment returned to contraction territory after only one month in expansion (47.4 vs 51.2). In addition, price pressures increased (70.3 vs 67.7), with petroleum-related products and plastics again reported as commodities up in price, although the number of commodities reported as down in price increased to six, up from three the previous month. Backlog of orders (50.9 vs 54.9) and supplier deliveries (52.8 vs 54.4) slowed. “Tariff impacts and the Middle East conflict continued to be mentioned by respondents, but much less frequently than in prior reports. The World Cup was again cited in the comments regarding increased business activity and new orders”, according to Steve Miller, Chair of the ISM.
2026-08-05
US Services Growth Remains Solid in June
The ISM Services PMI in the US fell to 54.0 in June 2026, down from 54.5 in May, matching market expectations. The reading still indicates solid expansion in US services activity, though at a softer pace, driven by a slowdown in business activity growth (55.4 vs. 57.7 in May) and new orders (55.1 vs. 57.3). Meanwhile, the employment index saw its largest increase since 2024, rising to 51.2 from 47.9, marking the first expansion in headcount since February. Price inflation also eased to a four-month low of 67.7, down from 71.3. Despite ongoing concerns about persistent inflation tied to the Middle East conflict, survey respondents noted that business conditions remain robust.
2026-07-06
US Services Activity Accelerates
The ISM Services PMI increased to 54.5 in May 2026 from 53.6 in April, above forecasts of 53.8. The reading pointed to the strongest gain in the services sector in three months, with faster growth seen for business activity (57.7 vs 55.9), new orders (57.3 vs 53.5) and inventories (62.5 vs 53.1). On the other hand, employment contracted for a third consecutive month (47.9 vs 48), with respondents commenting frequently that their companies had instituted hiring freezes or were not back filling vacated positions. In addition, price pressures intensified to hit the highest since August 2022 (71.3 vs 70.7), with diesel, gasoline, oil and related commodities being once again most frequently mentioned as up in price. Also, petroleum-related products were mentioned as a commodity up in price, a dynamic not seen yet in April. Meanwhile, growth in backlog of orders slowed (51.3 vs 53) and the supplier deliveries index indicated slower supplier delivery performance (55.2 vs 56.8).
2026-06-03