The data of the Purchasing Managers’ Index study of the Qatar Financial Center for the month of March showed an acceleration in the growth of overall commercial activity, an increase in employment rates, and an improvement in Qatari companies’ expectations for commercial activity for the next twelve months. The study indicated that business conditions continued to improve in light of the momentum witnessed by demand, which led to an increase in new business to record levels, the highest since July 2022.
Purchasing managers’ indices for Qatar are compiled from the responses to the survey received from a committee of about 450 companies from the private sector. For official national accounts data.
The Qatar Financial Center Purchasing Managers’ Index is a single-digit composite index that indicates the performance of non-energy private sector companies in Qatar. It is calculated on the basis of new orders, production, employment, suppliers’ delivery times and inventory of purchases.
The PMI rose for the fourth time in five months, from 51.9 in February to 53.8 points in March, indicating the strongest improvement in business conditions since July 2022.
The rise in the headline reading of the PMI on a monthly basis was less clear than it was in January by 6.2 points, which represented the second highest recorded rise since the study began in April 2017, but the latest reading remained above the study’s long-term average of 52.2 points. .
The study attributed the rise in the PMI to the continuous growth in the production and new business indicators, which rose at rates stronger than their long-term average rates, after the increases recorded in January 2023. Corporate data also revealed the attraction of new customers, the recovery of tourism activity, investments and successful marketing campaigns. It also pointed out that the indicators of production and new orders witnessed the highest growth rates in the wholesale and retail sector and the service sector, and the rise in the employment index to its highest level in eight months, contributed to the rise in the main PMI.
The data indicated that the expectations of Qatari private sector companies not related to energy remained very positive for the next twelve months, while the future production index decreased in March from its highest level in 41 months, recorded in February, but the average index for the first quarter of 2023 was 77 points, which is Much higher than the study’s long-term average of 64.7 points, the current quarterly performance is the best since the third quarter of 2019. At the sector level, the service providers sector had the highest level of confidence in March 2023, followed by the manufacturing sector.
March data indicated a further rise in average wages and salaries, despite the decrease in the personnel costs index from its highest level in 17 months in February 2023. The employment index, which tracks the total number of employees, rose to its highest level in eight months, indicating an increase in the number of employees. workforce.
In the same context, the data indicated that overall pressures on costs continued to decline since the beginning of the year to moderate levels, indicating a slight increase in purchase prices. At the same time, Qatari companies reduced the prices of their goods and services for the second time in three months, albeit at a slight pace.
Qatari companies also reduced the amount of unfinished business they have for the eighth consecutive month in March 2023, despite the continuous increase in new business. This indicates an increase in the number of employees and an improvement in the productivity of Qatari companies as well. As for the financial services sector in Qatar, it continued to grow at a remarkable rate in March due to a sharp increase in the volume of new business for the thirty-fourth consecutive month, and the overall activity of the financial services sector increased for the twenty-first month in a row and at a rapid pace, while expectations declined again compared to the last reading in January 2023, but it remained high.
New business witnessed growth for the thirty-fourth consecutive month in March 2023, and the growth rate remained strong despite its decline to its lowest level in two months, and the employment index reading was slightly lower than the reading for February 2023. March data indicated a strong rise in prices and fees for service companies Finance, albeit at a rate lower than the standard rate recorded in February 2023, without any significant change in the costs of production requirements during the month of March 2023. Commenting on the study, Mr. Youssef Mohamed Al-Jaida, CEO of the Qatar Financial Center Authority, said, "The financial services sector continued to be a major catalyst in achieving overall growth in March 2023, with growth rates in the production and new business indices remaining above the average in all sectors, and the financial services business activity index rose to 60.5 points.".
He pointed out that the commercial activity of private sector companies not related to energy in Qatar witnessed growth at the end of the first quarter of 2023, with sharper increases in the indicators of production and new orders. Both sub-indices also posted higher readings than the long-term average of the study, which began more than six years ago. The headline PMI rose to an eight-month high, due to a rise in the employment index.
As for future expectations, the future activity index decreased in March after recording its highest level in 41 months in February by 82.7 points, but the average index during the first quarter of 2023 was 77.0 points, which represents the best quarterly performance since the third quarter of 2019. .
