The USA's purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose preliminarily in October, to 54.3 from 54 in September. The index is a business cycle indicator for the economy, where index values above 50 indicate growth, while index values below that indicate a decline.
The purchasing managers' index for the service sector also rose slightly, from 55.2 the previous month to 55.4. The PMI for the manufacturing industry increased by 0.5 to 47.8, the highest value recorded in two months.
"The PMI figures for October are consistent with the GDP on an annual basis in the USA increasing by approximately 2.5 percent," comments Chris Williamson at S&P Global, which is behind the PMI statistics.
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