BENGALURU, Sept 5 Reuters Growth in India39;s dominant services industry lost some steam in August but overall conditions remained strong despite elevated inflationary pressures, according to a business survey that showed exports were at a record high on robust foreign demand.

Tuesday39;s findings, coupled with a sister survey on Friday which found factory growth expanded at its fastest pace in three months, suggest Asia39;s thirdlargest economy will be the fastestgrowing major country despite slowing global growth.

The SP Global India services Purchasing Managers39; Index fell to 60.1 in August from 62.3 in July, lower than the Reuters poll expectation of 61.0.

Still, the reading was above the 50mark separating growth from contraction for a 25th consecutive month the longest stretch since August 2011.

This spike in international demand supported one of the best sales performances recorded over the past 13 years, and acted as a catalyst for firms to expand their workforces as well as output, noted Pollyanna De Lima, economics associate director at SP Global.

Demand strength also fostered a heightened sense of optimism regarding the outlook, boding well for economic growth prospects.

A subindex monitoring overall demand slowed slightly in August compared to the previous month. Although it remained strong at 60.0 it was below July39;s 13year peak of 62.2.

Foreign demand was its highest since the series began in September 2014.

The business outlook for the next 12…