Growth in Ireland’s services sector slowed for the second month in a row in March, but confidence among businesses about future growth remained high, a survey showed on Wednesday.
The Investec Services Purchasing Managers’ Index slipped to 59.1 in March from 60.6 in February and a touch further back from a nine-month high of 61.0 in January.
Growth in Ireland’s services and manufacturing slowed after neighbouring Britain’s surprise decision last year to quit the European Union, and readings have been volatile since.
The weaker figures in March were caused by a dip in the new business sub-index to 60.6 from 62.4 and came after a survey on Monday showed growth in Irish manufacturing slowed for a third month in a row as growth in new orders weakened.
