Kuwait, Egypt sustain non-oil business growth in February: PMI survey .

Kuwait and Egypt’s non-oil private sectors maintained growth in February as business activity increased in both countries, according to S&P Global.

In its latest report, the financial services firm revealed that Kuwait’s Purchasing Managers’ Index stood at 51.6 in February, down from 53.4 in the previous month.

A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion in private business conditions, while a reading below 50 signifies contraction.

The steady momentum of non-oil business activity across Middle Eastern economies highlights progress in economic diversification efforts. In February, Saudi Arabia recorded a PMI of 58.4, slightly down from a decade-high 60.5 in January.

“Although we continued to see a generally positive performance of the non-oil private sector in Kuwait during February, there were some elements of the latest PMI survey which sound a note of caution,” said Andrew Harker, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

He added: “Primary among these was the fact that firms lowered their staffing levels, perhaps a sign of worries that the slowdown in new order growth has further to run.”

Despite this, overall business conditions in Kuwait’s non-oil private sector continued to improve, driven by rising output and new orders. Respondents in the survey attributed this growth to marketing campaigns across multiple channels as well as price cuts. In January, the International Monetary Fund reached an agreement with Egyptian authorities allowing the country to access about $1.2 billion to strengthen its finances.

Source: ARABNEWS