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ISM services rebound, but continue to track weaker than official US data
The ISM services index has bounced back nicely in January with the headline index at 53.4 versus 50.5 in December. The consensus was 52.0 with anything above 50 equating to expansion and anything below 50 being a contraction. The most interesting aspect is the employment component. Remember that last month it plunged to 43.8, indicating a deep contraction in hiring, which completely contradicted the strength in non-farm payrolls that was initially reported as a 216k increase that was then revised higher last Friday to 333k. The ISM employment index has now rebounded to 50.5, but this is only indicating very modest ... (full story)