Dubai non-oil private sector sees faster growth in March

DUBAI / Emirates Business

Dubai’s non-oil private sector economy expanded at a faster rate in March, while the total business activity (output) increased at the fastest rate since January 2015.
Two of the three key monitored sectors — travel & tourism and wholesale & retail — posted series record increases in activity. With new business growth also accelerating, expectations for the next 12 months were the second-strongest on record, just shy of January’s peak. Price discounting, particularly in the wholesale & retail sector, was likely a key driver of demand in March.
The seasonally adjusted Emirates NBD Dubai Economy Tracker Index — a composite indicator designed to give an accurate overview of operating conditions in the non-oil private sector economy — rose from 55.8 in February to 57.6 in March, the highest since May 2018. It was also the joint-highest figure in nearly two years and above the long-run average for the series since 2010 (55.2).
Business conditions improved at stronger rates in travel & tourism and wholesale & retail. Travel & tourism saw its headline index reach a record high of 59.8, while the headline figure for wholesale & retail was 59.7, just shy of the peak set in October 2017 (60.0). In contrast, business conditions at construction firms were the softest
in 28 months (51.8), as weaker new order growth weighed on the sector index.