MOSCOW, May 6 (Reuters) – Russia’s services sector contracted for a second straight month in April as weak client demand led to declines in output and new sales, while business confidence plumbed a 40-month low, a survey showed on Wednesday.
The S&P Global Russia Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 49.7 in April from 49.5 in March. The 50-mark separates growth from contraction.
New business fell after five months of growth, with the decline the quickest since September 2025. Export orders also dropped and at the fastest pace in a year and a half, S&P Global said.
Firms cut staffing for a third consecutive month as lower workloads reduced working hours. The pace of job shedding eased from March but remained among the quickest since January 2023.
Backlogs of work declined for the first time since September 2025 as companies processed incoming sales immediately due to sufficient capacity. Input cost inflation and output charge inflation both cooled further from January’s VAT-driven highs.
Business confidence weakened to its lowest since December 2022, though firms still expected activity to rise over the coming year. S&P Global said hopes for new client wins were tempered by customers’ financial difficulties.
(Reporting by Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Joe Bavier)
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