Nigeria · Consumer markets
New orders diverged across Nigerian service businesses in October 2026
Nigeria’s services purchasing managers’ index fell from 53.2 to 52.7 in October 2026, still indicating expansion. New orders rose in finance and insurance but fell in trade, telecommunications and transport, even as trade respondents reported stronger business activity.
Sources checked
Activity
Shared scale · 0 points to 62.6 points
New orders
Shared scale · 0 points to 62.6 points
Employment
Shared scale · 0 points to 62.6 points
Switch between reported business activity, new orders and employment. The neutral reading is 50 in each view.
Trade activity rose while new orders slipped below neutral
Trade recorded 57.3 for business activity, 49.6 for new orders and 52.8 for employment. Finance and insurance had 59.4 for activity and 60.1 for orders. Orders and current activity describe different stages of work, so they can point in different directions. Source 1
Transport and accommodation showed separate patterns
Transportation, courier and storage recorded 47.9 for activity and 43.6 for new orders, yet its employment index was 54.3. Accommodation and food services recorded 50.4 for activity, 50.0 for orders and 49.6 for employment. Its composite reading came to 49.8. Source 1
New orders slowed across the broader services group
The services new orders index fell from 54.5 in September to 51.7 in October, while the employment index increased from 51.7 to 53.5. New orders had been below 50 from April through June 2026 before climbing back above neutral in July. The monthly rows show both series together. Source 1
The survey measures direction across responses
The October survey received 1,851 responses across industry, services and agriculture. Its indices report the direction of change captured across responses. A reading of 60.1 does not say that new orders grew by 60.1%, or reveal the total volume or naira value of new orders. Source 1