Ireland’s services sector activity continues to be on the slide, falling to the lowest levels seen in over seven years during October. According to data released by Markit, the AIB services PMI saw a steep decline to 50.6 in October from 53.1 in September as Brexit uncertainties rage on.

The steep decline is especially significant since the services sector contributes to around 70% of Ireland’s economy. The sharp fall was mainly driven by a significant reduction in new orders, with the sub-index registering the slowest rate of expansion in over seven years, touching 50.9 in October from 52.2 in September.

New export orders rose at a modest pace, on account of higher demand from overseas customers, especially from Oceania and the Netherlands. New export orders grew at the fastest pace seen since June.

After touching close to an eight year low in September, business confidence among the services sector picked up in October to the highest levels in three months. However, ongoing Brexit uncertainties weighed on the business confidence, with only 37% firms anticipating business to pick up over the next 12 months.