The UK’s dominant service sector registered a further solid rate of expansion in January, according to the latest PMI® survey data from Markit and CIPS. Growth of total business activity was little-changed from December, and new business rose at the sharpest rate since last July. Service providers raised employment at the fastest pace since last October. That said, output growth was weaker than the trend rates achieved in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Moreover, the longer-term outlook for business activity hit a three-year low. The headline figure for the survey is the seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS UK Services Business ... (full story)