Does the ISM services index top 50 when the July reading lands Aug 5?

The Institute for Supply Management's Services PMI registered 54.1% for July 2026, released August 5, 2026, comfortably above the 50-point expansion threshold in the question and up slightly from June's 54.0%. It marked the 25th consecutive month the services sector has stayed in expansion territory. The Business Activity Index jumped 3.7 points to 59.1%, and the New Orders Index rose to 57.2%, both signaling strengthening demand.

The headline gain came even as the Employment Index fell back into contraction at 47.4%, down 3.8 points from June, and price pressures ticked higher to 70.3%, with respondents flagging petroleum-related products and plastics among costlier inputs. ISM said the July reading corresponds to roughly a 1.9-percentage-point annualized increase in real GDP, underscoring that demand-side strength outweighed the employment softness in the composite score.

The two community votes on this question split evenly at 50% communityYesPct. The actual reading of 54.1% was solidly above 50, meaning the yes side of that split was correct.