New Delhi, Aug 5 (IANS) Ongoing improvements in demand for the Indian services continued to support the growth of total new orders, international sales and output in the month of July, a report said on Tuesday.

At 60.5 in July, the seasonally adjusted Services PMI Business Activity Index was little-changed from 60.4 in June and, therefore, signalled another sharp increase in output, according to the HSBC India Services PMI for the month.

The rate of expansion was the best seen since August 2024, the report said.

“At 60.5, the services PMI indicated a strong growth momentum, led by a pick-up in new export orders. Future optimism rose but remained below H1 2025 levels,” said Pranjul Bhandari, Chief India Economist at HSBC.

On the price front, both input and output prices rose a tad faster than in June, but this could change going forward, as indicated by the recent CPI and WPI prints, Bhandari added.

Sustained increases in new business intakes were identified by survey members as the main aspect behind output growth, the report said.

According to the report, advertising, demand buoyancy and new client onboarding all underpinned the latest upturn in new orders.

July’s rise was sharp and the second-quickest in nearly a year (behind June), the report said.

Indian service providers also welcomed a stronger improvement in international demand for their services.

They secured new work from Asia, Canada, Europe, the UAE and the US. The rate of expansion in external sales was sharp and the second-fastest in a year (behind May), the report highlighted.

Finance and Insurance was the best-performing sector in terms of both new orders and business activity. On the other side of the spectrum was Real Estate and Business Services, where the slowest increases were registered.

As per the report, the service providers are optimistic for the year ahead.

Among the factors supporting business confidence were efficiency gains, marketing, tech innovation and a growing online presence, the report stated.

–IANS

aps/na