RIYADH: Economic activity across the globe is gathering pace with major economies showing signs of growth.
The US Purchasing Managers’ Index, which measures private sector activity in different countries, reached 57.6 in October, jumping from 55 in September. This was the highest growth in private sector activity since July.
The services sector expanded steeply while the manufacturing sector “continued to be constrained by supply issues.”
Private sector performance
The IHS Markit PMI for the UK rose to 57.8 in October compared to 54.9 in September. Similar to the US, the services sector grew at a higher rate than the manufacturing sector for the fifth month in a row as the latter grappled with supply chain disruptions.
In addition, China’s Purchasing Managers’ Index edged up slightly to 51.5 in October, up by 0.1 points from the previous month. This is the second consecutive month in which private sector activity expanded due to strong growth in the services sector. The manufacturing sector continued to plummet for the third month in a row.
Moreover, Australia’s index surged to 52.1 in October this year, the highest level in the past four months, compared to previous month’s 46. This marked the first expansion of the private sector since June. The easing of pandemic-related restrictions allowed demand to regain strength and consequently improved employment growth.
India’s composite PMI increased to 58.7 in October jumping noticeably from 55.3 in the previous month. This was the highest reading since January 2012. New orders also increased at the fastest rate since early 2012. Both manufacturers and service providers experienced expansion in their activity.
On the other hand, Russia’s private sector underwent a drop in activity as its PMI reached 49.5 in October, falling from 50.5 in September. Contraction in the services sector offset the positive growth in the manufacturing sector.
Unemployment in euro zone
Unemployment in the euro zone tapered off to 7.4 percent in September, down from 7.5 percent in the previous month, data published by Eurostat revealed. Unemployment fell as businesses demanded more labor following the easing of pandemic restrictions.
The jobless rate was highest in Spain, standing at 14.6 percent. It was followed by Italy and France where the unemployment rate was 9.2 percent and 7.7 percent respectively.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands and Germany had the lowest unemployment levels, reaching 3.1 percent and 3.4 percent respectively.
Inflation in Turkey
Turkey’s annual inflation rate reached the highest level since January 2019 as the rate rose to 19.9 percent in October, slightly higher than the previous month’s 19.5 percent, official data revealed.
Inflationary pressures were partly fueled by jumps in food and non-alcoholic beverages costs, which increased by 27.4 percent. Prices of hotels, cafes, and restaurants were also up by 25.23 percent.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices also recorded the highest growth since October 2018, increasing to 2.4 percent compared to 1.3 percent in September.
Additionally, producer prices inflation in the country skyrocketed to the highest annual rate since June 2002, rising by 46.3 percent in October, the Turkish Statistical Institute said. This was due to persistent global supply chain issues.
