BlockBeats News, April 3rd – Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, stated that PMI survey data indicates the U.S. economy is facing pressure from rising prices and escalating uncertainty, with the Middle East conflict further intensifying concerns about recent policy decisions. The service sector contracted for the first time since January 2023, dragging the overall economy to a near-stagnant level with a March annualized growth rate of only 0.5%. The most severely affected is the consumer-facing service industry, with March seeing one of the largest declines since 2009, excluding the lockdown period.
The previously strong-performing financial services and technology sectors have shown signs of weakening amid financial market volatility and concerns about rising interest rates. The key to the deterioration in economic growth is a decline in spending due to decreased purchasing power, while the sharp rise in energy prices in March has driven up costs and selling prices significantly. Survey data indicates that businesses are increasingly willing to pass on costs to customers in the coming months, and consumer price inflation could accelerate to near 4%. (FX168)
