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Monthly Services Index August 2022 (Provisional) July 2022 (Final)

Value of services increased by 2.2% in August while volume increased by 0.4%

Online ISSN: 2009-5074
CSO statistical publication, , 11am

Key Findings

  • In August 2022 the value of services increased by 2.2% when compared with July 2022.

  • Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+14.3%) and Accommodation & Food Service Activities (+3.5%) recorded the largest monthly value increases.

  • The value of services output was 22.1% higher in August 2022 compared with August 2021.

  • When compared with February 2020 (30 months earlier and pre-COVID-19), the value of services was 28.0% higher in August 2022.

  • The volume of services in August 2022 increased by 0.4% when compared with July 2022.

  • The sectors with the highest monthly volume increase in August 2022 were Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+12.7%) and Accommodation & Food Service Activities (+2.2%).

  • Services were 15.5% higher in volume terms in August 2022 compared with August 2021.

  • The volume of services in August 2022 was 21.2% higher than February 2020 (30 months earlier and pre-COVID-19).

Statistician's Comment

Commenting on the release, Tommy Allen, Statistician in the Business Statistics Division, said: "The value of services increased by 2.2% in August 2022, while the volume increased by 0.4% when compared with July 2022.

Value Monthly Change

The value of services output in August 2022 increased by 2.2% when compared with July 2022 on a seasonally adjusted basis. The sectors that recorded monthly increases were Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+14.3%), Accommodation & Food Service Activities (+3.5%), Wholesale & Retail Trade (+1.3%), Transportation & Storage (+1.2%), Other Service Activities (+0.7%), and Information & Communication (+0.7%).  The only sector that recorded a monthly decrease was Administrative & Support Service Activities (-0.3%).

Value Annual Change

On an annual basis, the value of services was 22.1% higher in August 2022 compared with August 2021. All sectors showed an increase in activity compared with August 2021, with a number of sectors showing large annual increases. The largest annual increases were in Transportation & Storage (+46.6%), Other Service Activities (+46.5%), and Accommodation & Food Service Activities (+36.8%). Caution should be exercised when interpreting these increases, as the comparison is with a very low base from a year ago. The remaining increases were in Information & Communication (+22.8%), Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+16.3%), Wholesale & Retail Trade (+11.7%), and Administrative & Support Service Activities (+9.6%).

Volume Monthly Change 

The volume of services output in August 2022 increased by 0.4% when compared with July 2022 on a seasonally adjusted basis. The sectors with monthly volume increases were Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+12.7%), Accommodation & Food Service Activities (+2.2%), Wholesale & Retail Trade (+1.7%), Administrative & Support Service Activities (+0.7%), and Other Service Activities (+0.5%). Sectors showing monthly volume decreases in activity were Information & Communication (-0.4%) and Transportation & Storage (-0.2%).

Volume Annual Change

On an annual basis, services were 15.5% higher in volume terms in August 2022 compared with August 2021. Most sectors showed an increase in volume. The largest annual sector increases were in Other Service Activities (+36.7%), Transportation & Storage (+28.1%), and Accommodation & Food Service Activities (+26.2%). However, caution should be exercised when interpreting these increases, as the comparison is with a very low base from the previous year.

Change of Services in August 2022 compared with pre-COVID-19

The value of services in August 2022 was 28.0% higher than February 2020 (30 months earlier and pre-COVID-19). The sectors showing an increase in value since February 2020 were Information & Communication (+50.4%), Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+23.8%), Wholesale & Retail Trade (+18.9%), Transportation & Storage (+6.8%), and Other Service Activities (+2.0%) . The sectors which recorded a decrease in activity were Administrative & Support Service Activities (-8.8%) and Accommodation & Food Service Activities (-2.4%).

The volume of services in August 2022 was 21.2% higher than in February 2020 (30 months earlier and pre-COVID-19), with a number of sectors showing an increase from February 2020 levels. These sectors were Information & Communication (+50.3%), Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (+19.5%), and Wholesale & Retail Trade (+8.5%). The sectors which showed a decrease in activity since February 2020 were Administrative & Support Service Activities (-16.6%), Accommodation & Food Service Activities (-12.6%), Other Service Activities (-7.3%), and Transportation & Storage (-6.5%)."

Graphs and Tables

The headline table shows the seasonally adjusted value and volume indices for Monthly Services Index. It also highlights the monthly and annual percentage change in both value and volume and overall changes since February 2020 (pre-COVID-19).

Seasonally Adjusted Monthly Services Index Base Year( 2015=100)
  Value Index Volume Index
August 2021132.9 121.1
July 2022158.8 139.4
August 2022162.3 139.9
% change   
Monthly2.2% 0.4%
Annual 22.1% 15.5%
February 2020 - August 202228.0% 21.2%
Figure 1: Monthly Services Index, January 2020 - August 2022
Figure 2: Monthly percentage change August 2022
Business SectorsMonth on MonthYear on Year
Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (M)1.272621.708
Administrative & Support Service Activities (N)-0.010260.3593
Accommodation & Food Service Activities (I)0.144361.3875
Information & Communication (J)0.3704511.1332
Other Service Activities (NACE 68,92-92,95-96)0.029581.5275
Transportation & Storage (H)0.105243.334
Wholesale & Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles
& Motorcycles (G)
0.272042.6537

Annual value percentage changes, February 2020 (pre-COVID-19) to August 2022

As of August 2022, most sectors had surpassed their pre-COVID-19 value level. Transportation & Storage had an annual value increase of 46.6% and was 6.8% higher than their pre-COVID-19 level in February 2020.

While Accommodation & Food Service Activities and Administrative & Support Service Activities had annual value increases of 36.8% and 9.6%, both remain below their February 2020 pre-COVID-19 level by -2.4% and -8.8%, respectively.

Business SectorsAugust 2021 - August 2022February 2020 - August 2022
All Services22.128
Wholesale & Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles
& Motorcycles (G)
11.718.9
Transportation & Storage (H)46.66.8
Accommodation & Food Service Activities (I)36.8-2.4
Information & Communication (J)22.850.4
Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (M)16.323.8
Administrative & Support Service Activities (N)9.6-8.8
Other Service Activities ( NACE 68,92-93,95-96)46.52
Table 1 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for the Non-Financial Traded sector

Table 2 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Wholesale and Retail Trade: Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles

Table 3 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Accommodation and Food Service Activities

Table 4 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities

Table 5 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Administrative and Support Service Activities

Table 6 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Transport and Storage

Table 7 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Information and Communication

Table 8 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume Indices for Other Service Activities

Table 9 Seasonally Adjusted Value and Volume percentage changes per sector February 2020 - August 2022