Non-oil sectors in the Gulf region are sheltered from the impacts of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, according to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index data.
The seasonally adjusted S&P Global PMI suggested that the index increased in Saudi Arabia and Qatar in March, while it remained unchanged in the UAE.
In Saudi Arabia, the headline survey rose to 56.8 in March, from 56.2 in February with the Output Index recording the highest growth since December 2017.
Qatar’s PMI picked up from 61.4 to 61.8 last month, while the UAE’s PMI remained unchanged at 54.8 .
Egypt’s PMI dropped from 48.1 in February to 46.5 in March.
The S&P data suggests a sharp improvement in the business condition and new orders, along with stronger improvements in purchasing and supplier delivery times in the Gulf region.
Moreover, Gulf economies do not seem to have suffered much from weaker external demand and a lengthening of supplier delivery times due to the ongoing war in Europe.
The war could even help the Gulf as higher oil and gas prices will provide a significant boost to the economies of countries in the region.
In contrast, all sub-components of the PMI fell last month in Egypt.
Triggered by higher global commodity prices due to the war, last month’s devaluation of the Egyptian pound will result in high prices and push the inflation rate up in the coming months.
