Dubai – Mubasher: Business activity across the Dubai private sector economy saw a “strong upturn” in August, marginally less marked than the 16-month peak recorded in July, according to a survey sponsored by Emirates NBD.
The seasonally adjusted Emirates NBD Dubai Economy Tracker Index fell to 55.7 in August from 55.9 in July, yet above the 50.0 no-change threshold for the sixth successive month.
The headline index is on track for its highest average reading for any quarter since the beginning of last year.
Wholesale and retail remained the best performing (index at 55.5), followed by travel and tourism (54.7) and construction (52.6).
Respondents mainly highlighted strong sales growth in August, backed by improving economic conditions and discounting strategies to stimulate client demand.
“After a strong reading in July, it is unsurprising to see a slightly softer Dubai Economy Tracker index in August,” according to Khatija Haque, head of MENA Research at Emirates NBD.
“Output and new orders still increased sharply last month, partly due to more aggressive price discounting by firms. Businesses also appear to be more optimistic about the coming months, which is encouraging,” Haque added.
Private sector business activity in Dubai picked up sharply in August, with the pace of expansion close to the 17-month high recorded during July.
The pace of job creation remained softer than the average since the survey began in 2010, the survey highlighted, adding that the latest expansion in new order books was the second-fastest since March 2015.
Input price inflation persisted for the sixth consecutive month in August, with higher operating costs recorded across all three key sub-sectors.
