Dubai – Mubasher: The UAE’s non-oil private sector has maintained its growth at a steady pace during October, a recent survey sponsored by Emirates NBD and produced by IHS Markit revealed on Monday.
The headline seasonally adjusted Emirates NBD UAE Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) slipped to 55 in October, from 55.3 in September, the survey showed.
“The headline UAE PMI […] has been broadly stable between 55 and 56 for the last four months, indicating growth in the UAE’s non-oil private sector at a similar rate to last year, when official GDP data showed the non-oil sector expanded 2.5%,” Khatija Haque, head of MENA Research at Emirates NBD, commented.
Output increased at a slower pace, marking the weakest growth in six months during October, despite the overall sharp rise in new orders, according to the survey.
The UAE non-oil private sector companies an increase in new business last month and anecdotal evidence showed that “promotional activity was partly linked to the improvement”, indicating that new orders growth from overseas slowed to the weakest since March, the survey said.
Employment was above the neutral 50-level in October after marking two-month low of job shedding, it added.
Input price inflation accelerated in October as the fastest since April on the back of the hike in fuel and raw materials prices, while output prices fell to lowest in three months, the survey said.
“Business optimism about future output rose to a record high in October, with nearly 78% of firms surveyed indicating they expected their output to be higher in a year’s time,” Haque noted.
“The surge in oil prices, as well as announcements of increased government spending and Expo 2020 investment, may have contributed to improved sentiment last month,” she said.
