Mubasher: The US service sector saw a month-on-month growth in its activity in November for the 106th consecutive month, report showed on Thursday.

The non-manufacturing index (NMI) edged up to 60.7% last November from 60.3% in October, pointing to a slightly faster growth for the sector, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said.

Analysts polled by MarketWatch projected a reading of 59.1%, while this marked the second strongest reading in 13 years.

The index for business activity climbed to 65.2% in October from 62.5% in the prior month, growing for the 112th straight month.

The index measuring new orders rose 1% to 62.5% last month from the previous month, while the import index jumped to 54%, 3.5% higher than the prior month.

However, the gauge of employment in the sector declined 1.3% to 58.4% in November.

By 3:09 pm GMT, the US dollar index fell 0.40% to 96.6790.