Investing.com - Service sector activity in the U.S. increased slightly less than expected in August, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the Institute of Supply Management (ISM) said its non-manufacturing purchasing manager's index (PMI) increased to 55.3 in August from the prior month’s reading of 53.9.
Analysts had expected the index to rise a bit higher to 55.4 last month.
On the index, a reading above 50.0 indicates the non-manufacturing sector economy is generally expanding, below 50.0 indicates the sector is contracting.
The Non-Manufacturing Business Activity Index increased to 57.5 last month, 1.6 points above July’s reading of 55.9 and better than the consensus forecast of 56.0.
The New Orders Index registered 57.1 in August, 2.0 points higher than the reading of 55.1 in the previous month.
The Employment Index rose 2.6 points to 56.2 last month from July’s reading of 53.6.
The Prices Index increased 2.2 points to 57.9 in August from the prior month’s reading of 55.7.
The ISM indicated that it was the 92nd consecutive month of expansion of economic activity in the non-manufacturing sector.
“The non-manufacturing sector has rebounded from the prior month’s cooling-off period”, ISM chair Anthony Nieves declared in the report.
“The majority of respondents are optimistic about business conditions going forward,” he added.
Following the report, EUR/USD traded at 1.1922 compared to 1.1921 ahead of the release, GBP/USD was at 1.3055 from 1.3048 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 109.04 from 109.03 prior to the publication.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, traded at 92.12 compared to 92.28 prior to the release.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were trading higher after the open. The Dow 30 gained 0.39%, the S&P 500 rose 0.41%, while the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.33%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,343.00 a troy ounce, compared to $1,343.74 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $49.11 a barrel from $49.19 earlier.