UAE - Mubasher: The UAE’s seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) declined to 56.1 in September 2022 from 56.7 last August, marking the first drop in three months.
Nonetheless, the PMI highlighted robust improvement in the UAE’s non-oil private sector with the index maintained above the 50 no-change mark, according to the S&P Global PMI’s latest data.
The growth rate in new orders last September was sharply faster than the trend signalled in August 2009. Overseas sales also went up in September yet in a moderate pace.
Although the rate of expansion plummeted from August's 38-month high, over 25% of firms increased their production in September 2022 amid growing demands, compared to 4% which posted a decrease in their output.
Non-oil firms witnessed a further rise in employment last September, quite the same from August 2022. Input purchasing also increased to the highest record in over three years, as companies sought to back inventories of raw materials amid growth in orders.
Meanwhile, output charges moderately declined for the fifth consecutive month last September, as firms hoped for a further hike in sales through competitive pricing.
David Owen, Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said: "The UAE PMI was slightly lower at 56.1 in September, after August's 38-month high of 56.7, but was nonetheless indicative of another strong pace of improvement in the non-oil economy.”
Owen elaborated: “At a time of heightened global recession risks, these findings suggest that domestic businesses are keeping well clear of economic storms in other regions, helped by above-trend rates of growth in output and new business as the country continues to recover from the [COVID-19] pandemic.”
He added: "Low price pressures are also helping to drive growth, with September data pointing to another month where inflation had rapidly come off the boil since the first half of the year.”
The economist concluded: “Despite input costs rising (after dropping in August), they did only slightly, as downward movements for a swathe of commodity prices helped to ease the burden on firms' procurement budgets. Subsequently, input purchasing increased at the fastest rate for over three years, helping to boost inventories and supporting both higher new orders and stronger output expectations for the next 12 months."
