Egypt: Non-oil private sector PMI remains weak in April
The S&P Global Egypt Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 47.4 in April from March’s 47.6. As a result, the index moved further below the 50.0 no-change threshold—where it has languished since December 2020—and signaled a faster deterioration in non-oil private sector operating conditions compared to the previous month.
April’s deterioration was due to falling employment, after firms onboarded staff in March. More positively, business activity slid at a milder pace than in the prior month in April, despite difficult market conditions continuing to restrain output. Meanwhile, new orders were knocked by weak demand, high prices and volatile exchange rates.
Inflationary pressures in Egypt notably eased in April; improved currency availability from recent policy measures led to the slowest rise in input costs in over three years. This cooling in inflation allowed firms to moderate their price increases, with output charge inflation slowing to its weakest rate in two years. Lastly, business confidence rose to a six-month high, driven by hopes for exchange-rate stability, lower prices, and better material availability.