Another slowdown in the service sector held back the UK economy at the start of 2022, according to the latest PMI® data compiled by IHS Markit and CIPS. With hospitality, leisure and travel all struggling due to Omicron restrictions, this offset resilient growth in business and financial services. Manufacturers outperformed service providers as a sustained turnaround in materials availability led to the fastest rise in production volumes for five months. However, all types of private sector businesses commented on capacity constraints and rising backlogs of work as a result of staff absences in January. Input cost ... (full story)