Revenues in key parts of the US service economy shrank by 1.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2005 after declines in three of four major sectors, the government said today.
The Commerce Department's Quarterly Services Survey showed that combined sales in four key services sector fell to $791.736 billion in the January-to-March period compared with $803.648 in the fourth quarter of last year.
The percentage change in the fourth quarter was not available because the Commerce Department added a new industry category - selected healthcare services - but did not report third quarter data for the new section necessary to calculate the pace of change.
Professional, scientific and technical services declined 0.5 per cent to $250.232 billion, compared to a 7.7 per cent rise in the fourth quarter.
Revenues in the information services sector, which includes publishing, the motion picture and broadcast industries along with telecommunications and data processing, dropped 4.1 per cent to $227.366 billion after a 5.0 per cent jump in the fourth quarter.
Administrative support and waste management services revenues shrank 4.3 percent to $124.027 billion, following a 4.2 per cent gain in the previous three months. Employment services tumbled 6.9 per cent while waste management was off 13.6 per cent.