Business activity in the UAE’s non-oil private sector economy continued to improve in October as new business and output climbed along with a rise in demand and employment.
The seasonally adjusted S&P Global purchasing managers’ index climbed to 56.6 in October, up from 56.1 in September. The index reading was a shade under the three-year high of 56.7 achieved in August, underpinning the health of the country's non-oil economy.
A reading above the neutral level of 50 indicates growth while one below it points to a contraction.
“The UAE PMI crept back up … indicating that the non-oil private sector had continued to grow at a robust pace at the start of the fourth quarter,” said David Owen, an economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
“The upturn was led by sharp expansions in business activity and new orders, giving further evidence that domestic firms were not only weathering the global economic storms, but enjoying strong demand growth.”
Central to the upturn was another sharp expansion in business activity at the start of the fourth quarter, as businesses surveyed reported higher client demand.
The rate of activity growth in the non-oil economy rose sharply from September and was the second fastest since July 2019.
New order inflows also rose at a steep rate in October, with companies posting the joint-strongest expansion in 11 months.
Some businesses cited growth in new clients, lower prices, improved services and the coming Fifa World Cup in Qatar as contributing factors to the sharp rise in sales.
However, with a sharp rise in demand, businesses faced additional strain on operating capacity in October that led to an increase in work backlogs. Both existing projects and coronavirus-induced shipping delays contributed to the build-up of backlogs.
Businesses dealt with the backlog pressure by increasing headcount at the fastest pace since July 2016, extending the sequence of growth in employment in the Emirates to six months.
“The key movements in October were seen on the capacity side as businesses responded to rising backlogs by increasing their employment numbers,” Mr Owen said.
“Firms also looked to stock up on inputs as they prepare work schedules to address their backlogs, leading to a rapid increase in purchasing activity that was the fastest for over three years.”
The UAE economy, which made a strong rebound from the pandemic-induced slowdown last year, has picked up pace this year. The Arab world's second-largest economy is set to expand by 5.4 per cent this year, according to the UAE Central Bank.
Emirates NBD forecasts that the economy will expand 7 per cent in 2022, due to a higher estimate for the energy industry's output and the “robust growth” of its non-oil sector, setting up the country for its fastest annual expansion since 2011, when output grew by 6.9 per cent.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank projects growth of 6.2 per cent, driven by both oil and non-oil gross domestic product growth.
The UAE’s foreign trade for the first six months of this year exceeded Dh1 trillion ($272 billion), compared with Dh840bn for the same period before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Revenue from the tourism sector, a key contributor to the country’s non-oil economy, exceeded Dh19bn during the first half of this year while total hotel guests in the same period reached 12 million.
Growth in the number of hotel guests was up 42 per cent from the same period before the pandemic.
Sales of off-plan and secondary property in Dubai hit a 12-year high in the third quarter, both in terms of volume and value, according to Property Finder.
Average prices for residential property in the emirate rose by 8.9 per cent in 12 months to the end of September, with average apartment prices increasing 8 per cent and villas recording a more than 14 per cent jump, according to a CBRE report.
In Abu Dhabi, villa and apartment sales prices rose 4 per cent a year during the third quarter. The emirate recorded 7,474 property transactions worth more than Dh22.51bn in the first six months of the year.
Meanwhile, in Egypt, the headline PMI index reading stood at 47.7 in October, slightly higher than September's 47.6.
It is the highest index reading since February but remains below the survey’s long-run average, underpinning a decline in operating conditions in the country’s non-oil private sector economy.
Businesses reported a “sustained decrease” in new business inflows, as inflationary pressure rose and spending dropped.
“Inflation continued to weigh on consumer sales and business spending,” Mr Owen said.
“Firms signalled that the deteriorating local and global economic environment was likely to hurt the non-oil sector even further, with business optimism regarding the next 12 months sliding to its lowest in the series' history.”
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
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Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
THREE
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EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
THE SPECS
Range Rover Sport Autobiography Dynamic
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 518bhp
Torque: 625Nm
Speed: 0-100kmh 5.3 seconds
Price: Dh633,435
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULTS
Men
1 Marius Kipserem (KEN) 2:04:04
2 Abraham Kiptum (KEN) 2:04:16
3 Dejene Debela Gonfra (ETH) 2:07:06
4 Thomas Rono (KEN) 2:07:12
5 Stanley Biwott (KEN) 2:09:18
Women
1 Ababel Yeshaneh (ETH) 2:20:16
2 Eunice Chumba (BRN) 2:20:54
3 Gelete Burka (ETH) 2:24:07
4 Chaltu Tafa (ETH) 2:25:09
5 Caroline Kilel (KEN) 2:29:14
Company profile
Name: Tratok Portal
Founded: 2017
Based: UAE
Sector: Travel & tourism
Size: 36 employees
Funding: Privately funded
THE DRAFT
The final phase of player recruitment for the T10 League has taken place, with UAE and Indian players being drafted to each of the eight teams.
Bengal Tigers
UAE players: Chirag Suri, Mohammed Usman
Indian: Zaheer Khan
Karachians
UAE players: Ahmed Raza, Ghulam Shabber
Indian: Pravin Tambe
Kerala Kings
UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Abdul Shakoor
Indian: RS Sodhi
Maratha Arabians
UAE players: Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat
Indian: S Badrinath
Northern Warriors
UAE players: Imran Haider, Rahul Bhatia
Indian: Amitoze Singh
Pakhtoons
UAE players: Hafiz Kaleem, Sheer Walli
Indian: RP Singh
Punjabi Legends
UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Sandy Singh
Indian: Praveen Kumar
Rajputs
UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed
Indian: Munaf Patel
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It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
