Activity in the country's services sector shrank again in December, although at a slightly slower pace than the previous month.
With a reading of 34.1, the NCB Purchasing Managers' index survey marked a contraction in the services sector that was second only to November's record low of 32.6.
The figure was still far below the 50 level which separates growth from contraction and was due to the ongoing global economic downturn coupled with the ongoing credit crunch.
For the seventh month in a row, staffing levels at service companies - ranging from banks to haulage firms - fell at the fastest pace in the series' history. Job reductions have now been recorded in each of the past ten months.
The survey also reveals that uncertainty led companies to postpone decisions on new projects last month. NCB says that this was part of the reason for the latest considerable fall in new business levels, which have now fallen every month since February.
The strength of the euro against sterling also made new business from the UK harder to secure.
Businesses also grew more pessimistic last month with many respondents forecast the economic downturn to intensify during 2009.
'Each of the four broad sectors (business, financial, TMT and travel and tourism) monitored by the survey recorded falling activity in December, although the rates of decline varied markedly,' commented NCB economist Brian Devine.
''The steepest contraction was registered among travel, tourism and leisure service providers, reflecting both the strong euro and weak domestic demand,' he added.
