Mubasher: The UAE none-oil private sector saw a slowdown in growth momentum in October with business conditions improving to the least extent in six months, according to a Thursday's survey sponsored by Emirates NBD and produced by IHS Markit.
UAE Purchasing Managers’ index (PMI) dropped for the third month in a row during October to 53.3, the lowest since April, from 54.1 in September.
The key driver behind this slowdown as whole was a relatively passive rise in new work, which makes a near-stagnation in employment possible.
In addition, growth of new business was substantially slower than that for output in October.
"In fact, the rate of increase was little-changed from September’s 75-month low. Data showed that falling exports was a factor behind relatively subdued demand", the report showed.
In spite of the rise of purchasing activity at weaker pace as well as the considerable slowdown of growth and pre-production inventories, the expansion remained solid amid forecasts of stronger sales growth.
Still, the prominent catalyst for improvement was higher output. The report highlighted that the latest "expansion was sharp, albeit slightly weaker than those seen throughout the third quarter."
“Although the headline PMI index declined in October, output growth remains very strong. However export orders declined for the fourth consecutive month, contributing to a slowdown in total new orders growth since the summer. Overall, growth momentum appears to have eased at the start of Q4 after a relatively strong Q3, but the data still points to solid expansion in the UAE’s non-oil private sector in October.”, said Khatija Haque, Head of MENA Research at Emirates NBD.
