Omicron spread: Night curfews may affect services sector recovery

With many states imposing night curfews ahead of the Christmas season to curb the spread of Omicron, the nascent recovery in the contact-sensitive services sector -- such as hospitality, tourism, travel, and entertainment -- may be affected.

During the second wave of the pandemic earlier this year, while manufacturing mostly held up, services contracted in May, June, and July, according to the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) data.

During the first wave of the pandemic in 2020, a contraction in the services sector was sharper than in manufacturing and took seven months to return to expansion territory.

Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at CARE Ratings,