The UAE's non-oil private sector maintained growth momentum in September 2026, with the seasonally adjusted S&P Global UAE Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) holding unchanged at 55.3, matching the 20-month high recorded in August, Gulf News reported. A reading above 50 signals an expansion in private-sector operating conditions.
The reading marks a continued rebound from earlier in the year, when the headline index had declined to 50.8 in June before recovering to 52.7 in July and 55.3 in August. S&P Global noted that supplier delivery times improved for a fourth consecutive month, indicating an easing of supply-chain bottlenecks, while firms saw rising business activity, new orders, and employment.
Stronger customer demand allowed companies to pass rising input expenses on to clients, driving selling-price inflation to its highest rate since May 2011. Surveyed firms cited higher expenses for raw materials, transport, freight, and shipping as key contributors to overall cost pressures.
David Owen, principal economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, stated that the September data showed the UAE non-oil economy had moved past its mid-year slowdown linked to regional conflict, noting that new export orders expanded at the fastest rate in nearly two years.
In Dubai, the emirate's non-oil PMI climbed from 54.1 in August to 54.5 in September, marking its highest reading of 2026. The increase was driven by the year's fastest uptick in business activity and the strongest growth in foreign orders in two years, although selling-price inflation in the emirate reached its highest level since January 2014.
Sources
- Gulf News · 2026-10-05
