Regional PMIs ease as cost pressures build

By Daniel Richards

UAE and Saudi PMIs eased to 54.8 and 54.0 in October, while Egypt’s unchanged 47.2 reading masked sharper declines in output and orders.
UAE export orders grew at their fastest pace in two years; Saudi sales remained domestically driven as export orders contracted for an eighth month.
Selling prices rose at a record pace in the UAE and Dubai, while competition limited Saudi pass-through despite rising costs.

October’s PMI surveys point to continued expansion in the non-oil private sectors of the UAE and Saudi Arabia, despite lower headline readings than in September. Demand remained firm in both countries, although the after-effects of the regional conflict continued to disrupt trade and raise costs. Egypt’s headline PMI was unchanged, but sharper declines in output and new orders pointed to weaker underlying conditions.

The UAE’s S&P Global PMI slipped to 54.8 from 55.3, still comfortably above June’s low of 50.8. Dubai’s index edged up to 54.6 from 54.5. Saudi Arabia’s Riyad Bank PMI fell to 54.0 from 55.3, its seventh consecutive expansionary reading but below its long-run average. Egypt’s S&P Global PMI held at 47.2, extending its contractionary run to 10 months...

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