UK Preliminary Services PMI jumps to 54.9 in April vs. 53.0 expected

• UK Manufacturing PMI contracted to 48.7 in April, missing estimates of 50.3.
• Services PMI in the UK rose sharply to 54.9 in April.
• GBP/USD holds higher ground near 1.2370 after mixed UK business PMIs.

The seasonally adjusted S&P Global/CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell sharply from 50.3 in March to 48.7 in April, missing the estimated 50.3 reading.

Meanwhile, the Preliminary UK Services Business Activity Index jumped to 54.9 in April, beating the market consensus of 53.0. The previous figure stood at 53.1.

Commenting on the flash PMI data, Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence said: “Early PMI survey data for April indicate that the UK economy's recovery from recession last year continued to gain momentum. ‘

“Improved growth in the service sector offset a renewed downturn in manufacturing to propel overall business growth to the fastest for nearly a year, indicating that GDP is rising at a quarterly rate of 0.4% after a 0.3% gain in the first quarter,” Chris added.

FX implications

GBP/USD is extending the advance toward 1.2400 following the mixed UK PMI data. The pair is adding 0.28% on the day to trade at 1.2383, as of writing.