How the UAE + KSA + Kuwait + Qatar’s non-oil private sectors fared in April: Purchasing manager indices (PMI) tracking non-energy sectors saw varying results in four of the Gulf’s countries in April, with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia seeing expanded business activity, and the UAE’s growth levels remaining unchanged from the previous month. Meanwhile, Qatar’s non-oil activity fell from the previous month while remaining in expansion territory.

REMEMBER- The all-important 50.0 mark is the threshold separating contraction from growth. Anything above 50 denotes expansion, while anything below indicates contraction.

UAE-

The UAE’s non-oil activity saw growth levels remaining largely unchanged from the previous month, with robust business activity indicating “a solid strengthening of operating conditions,” according to S&P Global UAE PMI (pdf). The headline figure came in at 54.0 during the month, remaining unchanged from March.

New orders and employment were up: The new orders subindex rose slightly to 56.9 in April — up from 56.3 in March — which was partially driven by increased domestic clients and what is dubbed as “the strongest upturn in international” in five months, Reuters writes. Meanwhile, hiring went up to its highest level in nearly a year, with the subindex for employment registering a reading of 51.4 as firms “increased hiring to manage work backlogs and support future business activity,” National Bank of Kuwait’s (NBK) senior economist Issa Hijazeen told EnterpriseAM UAE. However, “employment growth was still modest overall, adding to suggestions that some firms may be struggling to recruit,” S&P Global senior economist David Owen said.

Business activity rising but at a slower pace: UAE’s business activity also continued to rise, but it did so at its slowest pace in seven months, with firms indicating that they faced difficulties with completing existing work amid payment delays. Meanwhile, input purchases saw a considerable increase during the month, with companies reporting growing demand for materials and components. However, the growth in input purchases slowed from March’s 68-month high. Furthermore, stock levels also mostly remained unchanged, as growth in the stocks of some firms was offset by reductions elsewhere.

Firms’ sentiment remains positive: “Looking ahead, surveyed firms remained confident that sales pipelines and resilient market conditions would support activity going forward. The degree of confidence ticked up for the third month running and was the best recorded in 2025 so far,” the report reads. “Firms are also hopeful that elevated demand levels and strong pipelines, as characterized by steeply rising backlogs, should propel activity higher in the coming months," Owen said.

SAUDI ARABIA-

Non-oil business activity in the Kingdom grew at its slowest rate in eight months in April, in a slowdown that was primarily driven by a drop in new order growth, according to the Riyad Bank Saudi Arabia PMI (pdf). The seasonally adjusted headline figure came in at 55.6 in April, dipping from a reading of 58.1 in March.

The new orders subindex fell to 58.6 in April, down from 63.2 in March, marking the third consecutive month in decline for the Kingdom, according to Reuters. The rate of growth in new orders slowed to an an eight-month low, driven by a combination of global economic uncertainty having impacted client spending, as well as rising competitive pressures.

Employment up: Hiring growth accelerated to its fastest pace since October 2014. “This surge in employment is a response to rising sales and increased business activity, prompting firms to expand staffing capacities. Consequently, there has been a record hike in staff cost inflation, reflecting the increased demand for labour,” Riyad Bank Chief Economist Naif Al Ghaith said.

Firms’ expectations for output increased from the previous month: “Expectations for output in one year's time increased slightly from March, although the degree of business optimism remained weaker than the long-run survey average,” the report reads.

KUWAIT-

Non-oil activity in Kuwait continued to expand in April, with the country recording its eighth consecutive month above the 50.0 mark for healthy growth, according to S&P Global’s PMI (pdf). Kuwait’s headline reading went up 1.9 points m-o-m to record 54.2 in April — a five-month high for the nation’s headline figure.

New orders continued to accelerate during the month, driven by improved marketing activity and competitive pricing. New export orders also saw a marked expansion during the month, after having increased at their fastest pace in a year last month. Meanwhile, firms’ purchasing activity was up for the first time in three months, driven by “efforts to meet customer requirements in a timely manner and replenish stocks.” This, in turn, led to an increase in input stocks.

Input costs also saw a sharp increase in April, with the pace of inflation rising at its fastest rate in a year. However, this was offset by efforts to price competitively, leading to only a slight decrease in output costs.

The outlook remains positive: “Companies remained optimistic that output will increase over the coming year, with positive sentiment reflecting continued competitive pricing policies, new product development and marketing activities. Optimism dipped slightly from March but remained comfortably above the series average,” the report reads.

QATAR-

Qatari non-oil private sector’s growth fell to its lowest level in three months, driven by “a fall in new orders, faster suppliers' delivery times and a slower rate of job creation,” according to Qatar Financial Center PMI (pdf). The nation’s headline figure fell to 50.7 in April, down from 52.0 in March, sending Doha just slightly above the 50.0 threshold indicating growth.

Overall business activity grew in April, which reflected in growth in manufacturing, services, and wholesale & retail. Companies also increased their purchasing activity during the month, which was helped by suppliers’ delivery times seeing their quickest improvement in eight months.

The rate of employment remained strong during the month, extending the current run of job creation to nine consecutive months. However, overall job creation was the slowest since last August. Average wages also increased at their slowest rate in five months but still recorded one of its strongest performances since 2017.

Qatari businesses were less optimistic than usual: “Qatari firms remained confident regarding the 12-month outlook, with optimism linked to growth in real estate and construction, a rising expatriate population, investment, tourism, and government development initiatives. Sentiment was weaker than in March, however, and below the long-run survey trend. This partly reflected a reduction in new business during the month, the third contraction in 2025 so far albeit at a modest rate,” the report reads.

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