Index of Services, UK: July 2022

• Monthly services output rose by 0.4% between June and July 2022, standing 1.5% above February 2020, which was the last month of “normal” trading conditions prior to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

• There were rises in 10 of the 14 sectors in the Index of Services (IoS) during July 2022; information and communication contributed 0.10 percentage points to the IoS (with growth of 1.5%).

• 9 of the 14 services subsectors have surpassed their February 2020 pre-coronavirus pandemic levels, with the largest percentage increase being in the transportation and storage subsector (9.4%).

• Services output for the three months to July 2022 fell by 0.2%, compared with the three months to April 2022; over this period, human health and social work activities was the largest contributor to the fall, with growth falling by 2.3%.

• For further and detailed analysis of the effect on our monthly Index of Services estimate, please see our GDP monthly estimate, UK: July 2022 article published on 12 September 2022.

Data sources and collection

The Index of Services (IoS) is compiled using data from:

• the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Monthly Business Survey (44.4%)

• the ONS Retail Sales Inquiry (6.4%)

• the ONS Government Expenditure (20.1%)

• the ONS Households' Expenditure (15.3%)

• the ONS Finance Expenditure (7.8%)

• Other sources (5.9%)

The Monthly Business Survey (MBS) data are published alongside this release in our MBS turnover of services industries dataset.

Data relating to the retail industry are broadly comparable with our Retail sales, Great Britain: July 2022 bulletin, published on 19 August 2022.

For further information on what is included within Other, please see our GDP(o) data sources catalogue.

The percentage of each data source is based on their gross value added weight. The GDP(o) methods and sources pages provide more information on the data that underpin these statistics. Of particular note is the GDP(o) data sources catalogue.

From February 2018, value added tax (VAT) data have also been included across 64 production industries for small- and medium-sized businesses. For more information, see our VAT turnover data in National Accounts: background and methodology.

Quality and methodology

More quality and methodology information on strengths, limitations, appropriate uses, and how the data were created is available in our Index of Services QMI.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

The ONS’ MBS is fully online, meaning that business owners can log on from any location and submit their data at an appropriate time. Most other data in the IoS come from within the ONS and therefore will be less affected than survey data.

Our latest data and analysis on the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on the UK economy and population are available on their own web page. This is the hub for all special coronavirus-related publications, including the fortnightly Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS).

The ONS has released a public statement on COVID-19 and the production of statistics. If you have specific queries, you can contact the media relations office by email at media.relations@ons.gov.uk.

Economic statistics governance after EU exit

Following the UK's exit from the EU, new governance arrangements are being put in place that will support the adoption and implementation of high-quality standards for UK economic statistics. These governance arrangements will promote international comparability and add to the credibility and independence of the UK's statistical system.

At the centre of this new governance framework will be the new National Statistician's Committee for Advice on Standards for Economic Statistics (NSCASE). NSCASE will support the UK by ensuring its processes for influencing and adopting international statistical standards are world leading. The advice NSCASE provides to the National Statistician will span the full range of domains in economic statistics. This includes the National Accounts, fiscal statistics, prices, trade, and the balance of payments and labour market statistics.