The rate of private-sector business expansion in Saudi Arabia eased slightly last month as new orders declined, a survey released yesterday shows.
Despite the dip, the strength of the data suggested the economy was shrugging off the impact of the global slowdown, said SABB HSBC, which compiled the purchasing managers' index (PMI).
"Saudi Arabia's PMI score remained strong in December as the domestic economy continued to sidestep the worst effects of the global slowdown," Simon Williams, a regional chief economist for HSBC, wrote in a research note.
HSBC's Saudi Arabia PMI declined to 57.7 last month, down from a three-month high of 58.1 the month before, according to the data released yesterday. A score above 50 indicates an increase in activity.
Employment increased at its fastest rate since August. However, the new-order index slowed to 65.4 last month from 67.7 in the previous month. Backlogs of work rose again, with the rate of increase the highest for seven months.
Part of the reason for the resilience of the economy was the robustness of public spending, which is expected to continue to rise over this year, said Mr Williams.
The government last week approved a stimulus budget for this year, estimating spending at 690 billion riyals (Dh675.84bn). It follows a 25 per cent rise in public spending last year.
"The relatively closed nature of the Saudi economy - non-oil exports are modest and the banking system is domestically funded - also suggests that the private sector should continue to be shielded from weakening global growth and strained international liquidity," wrote Mr Williams. The rise in the backlog of work and a further pick-up in the cost of labour indicated the economy may be running up against capacity constraints, he said.
The gains were modest, however, which did not point towards a return to the soaring inflation that beset the kingdom in 2007 and 2008, he said. While both input and output prices rose last month, input price inflation was the lowest for more than a year.
[ tarnold@thenational.ae ]
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Match info
Uefa Champions League Group H
Manchester United v Young Boys, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham v Ajax, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
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KEY DATES IN AMAZON'S HISTORY
July 5, 1994: Jeff Bezos founds Cadabra Inc, which would later be renamed to Amazon.com, because his lawyer misheard the name as 'cadaver'. In its earliest days, the bookstore operated out of a rented garage in Bellevue, Washington
July 16, 1995: Amazon formally opens as an online bookseller. Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought becomes the first item sold on Amazon
1997: Amazon goes public at $18 a share, which has grown about 1,000 per cent at present. Its highest closing price was $197.85 on June 27, 2024
1998: Amazon acquires IMDb, its first major acquisition. It also starts selling CDs and DVDs
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2018: Amazon's market cap briefly crosses the $1 trillion mark, making it, at the time, only the third company to achieve that milestone
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Correspondents
By Tim Murphy
(Grove Press)
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Juventus 1 Ajax 2
Ajax advance 3-2 on aggregate
Sui Dhaaga: Made in India
Director: Sharat Katariya
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav
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Brief scores:
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Oman 109-3 in 18.4 overs (Aqib Ilyas 45 not out, Aamir Kaleem 27) beat UAE 108-9 in 20 overs (Usman 27, Mustafa 24, Fayyaz 3-16, Bilal 3-23)
Tips for newlyweds to better manage finances
All couples are unique and have to create a financial blueprint that is most suitable for their relationship, says Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial. He offers his top five tips for couples to better manage their finances.
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What's in my pazhamkootan?
Add:
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Optional:
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Tank warfare
Lt Gen Erik Petersen, deputy chief of programs, US Army, has argued it took a+“three decade holiday” on modernising tanks.
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