New Delhi, Nov. 6 -- India's services sector continued to expand in October, though the pace of growth eased to a five-month low, according to the HSBC India Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) released on Thursday.

The index fell to 58.9 in October from 60.9 in September, remaining well above the neutral mark of 50 that separates growth from contraction.

The report, compiled by S&P Global, said that while demand buoyancy and the recent GST reforms boosted business activity, competitive pressures and heavy rains constrained momentum.

"India's services PMI softened to 58.9 in October, which represented the slowest pace of expansion since May," said Pranjul Bhandari, Chief India Economist at HSBC. "That said, the PMI remains well a...