The Riyad Bank Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers’ Index report shows an increase to 59.6 in April from 58.7 in March.

Overall non-oil business activities in Saudi Arabia have shown a significant improvement in April, as strong domestic demand triggered an increase in new orders at the fastest rate since September 2014, an economy tracker revealed.

According to the latest Riyad Bank Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers’ Index report, formerly known as the S&P Global Saudi Arabia PMI, revealed that the Kingdom’s PMI went up to 59.6 in April from 58.7 in March. This is fractionally lower than the eight-year peak in February, when the metric hit 59.8.

The index indicates PMI readings above the 50-mark show as non-oil private sector growth, while those below 50 signal contraction.

Riyad Bank’s Chief Economist Naif Al-Ghaith, said: “April PMI data highlighted another steep expansion of business activity across the Kingdom’s non-oil private sector economy. We have witnessed rising tourism numbers, higher consumer spending and new business opportunities related to major infrastructure projects.”

He added, “Moreover, long-term business expansion plans have made the rate of job creation slightly stronger than seen on average in the first quarter of 2023.”

The report also states that job creation continued in April, as signaled by a rise in total employment numbers for the 13th month in a row.

Source:  Arab News