The service sector in Taiwan flashed a “yellow-blue” light in June, signaling sluggish growth for the eighth consecutive month, according to the Commerce Development Research Institute, CNA reported. Citing a survey, the CDRI said the index of service industry was 95 points in June, one point below its forecast. It said the slow growth was due mainly to continued weak global demand, which has affected the domestic wholesale industry. Although beverage sales and department store chains’ anniversary sales boosted the local retail business in June, the weakness of the wholesale industry compromised the performance of the entire service sector in June, the CDRI said. The think tank uses a five-color coded system, coupled with the ISI, to describe the climate of the local service sector, focusing on three major segments—securities trading, the labor market and wages, and business operations. Red signals overheating, yellow-red indicates slight overheating, green represents steady growth, yellow-blue signals sluggishness and blue indicates recession. The score for a yellow-blue light ranges between 93 points and 99 points.
