Cyprus services turnover holds up in Q2

**But transport in the doldrums**

Turnover in the services sector seems to have held up in the second quarter despite the difficult economic climates, according to the latest figures from the Statistical Service.
Accommodation and food services rose by 3.3% in April-June compared with the same period of the previous year, while information and communication rose by 2.9%.
It should be noted that these figures refer to turnover in value, which is not the same as growth in real terms as measured in the GDP statistics.
Turnover in professional, scientific and technical activities rose by 2.4% and in administrative and support service activities by 1.6%.
For the first half of the year as a whole, accommodation and food services was up 1.4%, information and communication was up 4.8%, professional, scientific and technical activities rose by 3.1% and administrative and support services rose by 3.3%.
By contract, in the transport sector, turnover in the first half of 2012 dropped by 12.4% compared with the corresponding period of 2011.
Land transport was down 3.4%, water transport (which includes shipping) tumbled by 37.8%, perhaps reflecting weakness in world trade, while air transport declined by 21.2%.
Postal and courier services fell by 2.1% in the same period.