BENGALURU, March 5 Reuters Activity in India39;s services sector continued to accelerate in February, albeit at a slightly slower pace, according to a business survey that also showed inflationary pressures were cooling.

Tuesday39;s survey injects a sense of optimism in the industry, the engine of economic growth and jobs, suggesting Asia39;s third largest economy will continue to grow at a worldbeating pace this year after registering 8.4 last quarter.

The HSBC India Services Purchasing Managers39; Index, compiled by SP Global, fell to 60.6 last month from January39;s sixmonth high of 61.8 and confounding a preliminary reading for a rise to 62.0.

However, it has stayed above the 50mark that separates growth from contraction since August 2021.

India39;s services PMI suggests that the pace of expansion in the services sector eased in February from January, noted Ines Lam, economist at HSBC.

Due to a slowdown in growth in new orders and output, services companies39; outlook for future business activity, while remaining strongly positive, weakened slightly.

New business a key gauge of demand softened to a six month low but has been in expansionary territory for over twoandahalf years and orders from abroad remained resilient.

However, the outlook for the coming 12 months was not as positive and business optimism was at its weakest since November. Hiring slowed and employment generation was barely in positive territory.

That said, firms got some relief from…