Saudi PMI down to 56.9 points in November, business activity rises rapidly: IHS Markit

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Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for November 2021 fell 0.8 points to 56.9 points from 57.7 points in October, IHS Markit said in its latest report.

Despite the decline, the index was in line with the average recorded over the 12-year series.

The Saudi Arabia PMI indicated another robust expansion in the non-oil private sector during November, the consultancy said.

Business activity rose at one of the fastest rates since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as firms enjoyed strong demand and modest price pressures.

However, a softer rate of new business growth meant that the overall uplift in economic conditions was the least marked since August, which played a part in dampening firms' expectations for future activity, the report added.

The largest component of the headline PMI - New Orders Index - fell for the second month in a row from September's seven-year high. Despite this, the index continued to indicate a robust upturn in new business volumes that was stronger than most of the recovery period since the initial COVID-19 lockdown.

The growth rate was slightly weaker than October's near four-year high. While output was strong enough to ensure a reduction in backlogs of work, the rate of depletion was the slowest recorded since the start of the pandemic, as firms signaled that demand pressures had begun to squeeze overall capacity.

Meanwhile, purchases rose sharply amid efforts to build input stocks in the face of global supply chain disruption. However, local vendors managed to avoid supply problems and reduced their delivery times for the third month running.