Business activity in the UAE continued to expand in September, although the pace of output growth in its non-oil private sector was the slowest in three years.
The S&P Global PMI Index for the UAE dipped to 53.8 in September from 54.2 in August. Although well above the 50 neutral mark, the index was at its second lowest in three years, beating only July's reading of 53.7.
While businesses surveyed indicated a rise in output last month on the back of stronger demand, the pace of growth slowed down to the lowest level since September 2021, S&P Global Market Intelligence said in a report on Thursday.
New business received by non-oil companies in the Emirates rose at a sharp pace in September, helped by an increase in export sales. However, the rate of expansion decelerated and was the second-weakest in a year and a half.
“Businesses faced further challenges with the completion of new work, despite a slowing of sales growth and a strong uplift in purchases,” David Owen, senior economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said.
“Competition remained another area of difficulty, with panellists [surveyed] reporting that tougher market conditions had led to a more cautious outlook for the upcoming year – output expectations are now at their lowest since early 2023.”
A recent trend of selling price increases persisted in September, as businesses raised charges at the fastest pace since January 2018. The uplift followed another sharp increase in rates, with shipping, petrol, technology and maintenance costs often reported as sources of inflationary pressures, according to the survey findings.
Despite the slowing pace of growth in the UAE’s non-oil private sector, the overall economy is set to maintain robust growth momentum this year.
The country's economy, which grew by 3.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2024, is expected to expand by 4 per cent this year on the back of a boost from its non-oil sector, according to the latest data from the Central Bank of the UAE.
The non-oil sector is projected to remain strong at 5.2 per cent in 2024 and 5.3 per cent in 2025, driven mainly by efforts to boost foreign investments and continuing structural reforms such as 100 per cent ownership of foreign businesses and tax reforms, the banking regulator said.
The Emirates also reported a record Dh1.4 trillion ($381.5 billion) in non-oil foreign trade in the first six months of this year, which underpins the recent flurry of economic and trade deals it has signed with partners across continents.
Saudi Arabia
Non-oil private sector business conditions in Saudi Arabia saw its best improvement in four months at the end of the third quarter.
The seasonally adjusted Riyad Bank purchasing managers’ index – a crucial gauge of the kingdom’s non-oil economy – climbed to 56.3 in September, up from 54.8 in August. The benchmark is well above the neutral 50 mark that separates non-oil economic growth from contraction.
Saudi Arabia’s PMI rose for the second consecutive month in September, hitting the highest reading since May. The latest reading underpins a “notable acceleration in non-oil private sector growth”, Naif Al Ghaith, chief economist at Riyad Bank, said. “Businesses are responding to stronger domestic demand, which plays a critical role in reducing Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil revenues.”
The upward trend in activity “signals rising business confidence, which reflects a healthy environment for investments, job creation, and overall economic stability”, he added.
The 1.5-point rise in the PMI Index was supported by sharp expansions in output and new orders, as well as a tightening of supply conditions in the kingdom. After rising at a softest pace since early 2022 in August, output levels surged in the latest survey period, driven by higher demand and approval of new projects in Saudi Arabia.
“This growth in the non-oil sector is particularly significant given the current context of oil production cuts and declining global oil prices,” Mr Al Ghaith said. “As oil revenues come under pressure, the robust performance of the non-oil private sector serves as a buffer, helping to mitigate the potential impact on the country's economic health.”
Saudi Arabia, the world’s leading oil exporter, is pushing to diversify its economy away from oil under its Vision 2030 programme. Among the central planks of the overarching economic reform agenda are supporting the development of sectors including technology, property, tourism and infrastructure, boosting employment, expanding the non-oil industrial base as well as expanding the kingdom’s financial markets and increasing foreign direct investment.
The kingdom expects its overall economy to expand by 0.8 per cent this year, supported by a 3.7 per cent growth its non-oil sector, the finance ministry said this week. The economy is projected to grow by 4.6 per cent in 2025, 3.5 per cent in 2026 and 4.7 per cent in 2027.
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The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
More from Neighbourhood Watch
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Anti-semitic attacks
The annual report by the Community Security Trust, which advises the Jewish community on security , warned on Thursday that anti-Semitic incidents in Britain had reached a record high.
It found there had been 2,255 anti-Semitic incidents reported in 2021, a rise of 34 per cent from the previous year.
The report detailed the convictions of a number of people for anti-Semitic crimes, including one man who was jailed for setting up a neo-Nazi group which had encouraged “the eradication of Jewish people” and another who had posted anti-Semitic homemade videos on social media.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
How to increase your savings
- Have a plan for your savings.
- Decide on your emergency fund target and once that's achieved, assign your savings to another financial goal such as saving for a house or investing for retirement.
- Decide on a financial goal that is important to you and put your savings to work for you.
- It's important to have a purpose for your savings as it helps to keep you motivated to continue while also reducing the temptation to spend your savings.
- Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
On sale: now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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Joe Root's Test record
Tests: 53; Innings: 98; Not outs: 11; Runs: 4,594; Best score: 254; Average: 52.80; 100s: 11; 50s: 27
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Scores
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)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE%20JERSEYS
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Racecard
6.35pm: The Madjani Stakes – Group 2 (PA) Dh97,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
7.10pm: Evidenza – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,200m
7.45pm: The Longines Conquest – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 2,000m
8.20: The Longines Elegant – Conditions (TB) Dh82,500 (D)
8.35pm: The Dubai Creek Mile – Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 1,600m
9.30pm: Mirdif Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (D) 1,400m
10.05pm: The Longines Record – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,900m
KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Kandahar%20
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57%20Seconds
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
The specs
Engine: 2.9-litre, V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: seven-speed PDK dual clutch automatic
Power: 375bhp
Torque: 520Nm
Price: Dh332,800
On sale: now
The years Ramadan fell in May
