Activity in the nation's service sector slipped 0.7 percent in October from the previous month, due to a temporary slump in mobile telecommunications as well as sluggishness in the transportation and power industries caused by a drop in industrial production, according to a preliminary report issued Tuesday by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry. The seasonally adjusted index of overall tertiary sector activity reached 102.9 against the 100-point benchmark. A MITI official said the overall trend of service industry activity has been showing "modest growth" and is expected to be up again in November, thanks to an anticipated recovery in sectors such as telecommunications. However, he added that weak activity in the wholesale, retail and food service sectors is acting as a drag on overall tertiary industry activity. Four out of the six sectors contributed to the fall. But the real estate, finance and insurance sectors marked an increase in October due to the extension of low-interest housing loans by Housing Loan Corp. and an increase in stock trading.
