UK service sector shrinks amid Iran war disruption and heatwave – business live

<p>Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news</p><p><strong>Today’s UK Service PMI report (which polls purchasing managers from across the sector) found there was a “sustained reduction in backlogs of work across the service economy”.</strong></p><p>This was due to weak demand, <strong>S&amp;P</strong> <strong>Global</strong> reports, adding:</p><p>This contributed to another fall in employment numbers, with the pace of job losses the sharpest since February. Many service providers noted either redundancies or the non-replacement of voluntary leavers in response to reduced business requirements and pressure on margins from rising costs.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2026/jul/03/oil-price-fall-strait-of-hormuz-traffic-jumps-food-price-inflation-services-sector-live-news-updates">Continue reading...</a>