5th Feb 2026 01:29
(Alliance News) - Ireland's private sector activity slowed slightly in January, as both services and manufacturing cooled but remained in growth territory, S&P Global reported Thursday.
The AIB Ireland composite purchasing managers' index fell to 53.3 points in January from 53.6 in December.
A reading above the 50-point neutral mark indicates an overall increase in month-on-month business activity, while a reading below signals a contraction.
Specifically, the services PMI decreased to 54.5 points in January from 54.8 in December.
David McNamara, AIB chief economist, commented: "Increased activity in January was driven by new business and solid job gains. The rate of growth in the Irish services sector remained faster than the flash Eurozone, UK and US PMIs, at 51.9, 54.3, and 52.5, respectively.
"The four sub-sectors covered in the survey registered varying paces of expansion in January. Financial services registered the fastest growth once again, with more modest gains in technology, media & telecoms, business services, and transport, tourism & leisure. Hiring activity was also mixed across the sectors, with stagnant employment in TMT - an improvement on the outright contraction seen in recent month - offsetting stronger jobs growth in the other three sectors."
Input price inflation accelerated to a 34-month high with firms pointing to wages, pensions and energy as the main cost pressures.
"In terms of the outlook, business sentiment eased to a 3-month low, but firms remained broadly optimistic for their prospects in 2026, linked to new projects and business opportunities and upcoming investments," added McNamara.
On Tuesday, S&P Global reported that manufacturing PMI was at 52.2 points in January, unchanged from December.
S&P Global compiles the PMI figures each month using survey responses from a panel of 400 service sector companies and around 250 manufacturers. The composite figure is a weighted average of the services PMI and manufacturing output index.
By Judy Amaca, Alliance News reporter Asia-Pacific
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