Dubai's non-oil private sector growth eased to the lowest level in seven months in November though output and new orders rose, but at weaker rates, as activity progressed on existing contracts and due to the positive sentiment in the GCC caused by the FIFA football world cup, survey data published by S&P Global showed on Tuesday.
The headline S&P Global Dubai Purchasing Managers' Index dropped to 54.9 in November from 56.0 in October. The latest reading was the lowest since April. A score above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.
"The Dubai non-oil economy enjoyed another robust expansion in November, but there are increasing signs that the latest phase of growth in the emirate has now peaked," David Owen, an economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said.
"While firms continued to enjoy increased demand, the global economic slowdown has begun to limit spending among clients, while some companies found that tight competition continued to make sales growth challenging."
Output continued to expand in November, though at the slowest pace in nine months.
The overall increase in output was mainly due to the further rise in new orders, linked to the positive impact of sports events such as the FIFA World Cup.
Nonetheless, the rate of growth in new business eased to the weakest since February. Both employment and inventories rose slightly in November.
On the price front, input costs remained relatively stable, while output charges decreased less than that in October. Firms reported that higher fuel prices were largely offset by falling supplier charges for raw materials.
Due to stronger expectations in wholesale and retail, business confidence toward future output was positive in November.
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