By Innovation-sa on April 21, 2019 in News
Saudi Arabia’s non-oil private sector has reached its highest level since December 2017 as confidence in the Kingdom starts to return, reveals data published by the Emirates NBD Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI).
The survey shows that the Kingdom’s private sector’s new order growth accelerated to its fastest since April 2015. According to Khatija Haque, head of MENA Research at Emirates NBD, the average PMI reading for Q1 2019 was 56.5, indicating the strongest quarterly expansion in the non-oil private sector since Q4 2017.
The latest poll showed that the output of goods and services across the non-oil private sector increased at a faster rate in March and reached a seven-month high. This has influenced companies to raise their buying levels and boost stocks of purchases. New export order rose marginally for the first time in three months.
Companies participating in this monthly survey of business conditions in the Saudi Arabian private sector reported that the upturn in the market reflected stronger market conditions. In addition, greater sales efforts, improved product offerings and competitive pricing attracted customers.
With firms looking to increase sales through competitive pricing, last month saw a slight drop in average prices for goods and services. However, confidence towards future output remained strongly positive in the poll results.
Arabian Business – April 2019