 "Labourers work at the construction site of a residential building in Mumbai")
India's services industry ended 2016 on a sour note, contracting for a second month in a row in December as orders shrank amid a severe cash shortage, a private business survey showed on Wednesday.
The Nikkei/Markit Services Purchasing Managers' Index was little changed at 46.8 in December from November's 46.7. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.
A new business sub-index, an indicator of domestic and foreign demand, fell to a 39-month low of 46.0 in December from 46.7, even though firms cut prices of their goods despite input costs rising at a faster pace.
"The Indian service economy ended 2016 on a grim
