Dubai Witnessing Unprecedented Growth in Job Market

The non-oil business sector in Dubai witnessed its fastest growth rate since September 2022, according to S&P Global’s report on the UAE’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). The PMI for March was 55.5, up from 54.1 in February, indicating expansion in the sector.

The report also highlighted multi-year records in both job creation and inventory growth. However, despite the significant rise in new orders, the S&P noted a slowing growth rate to a 14-month low.

Moreover, the growth in employment, output, and purchase stocks were the main factors contributing to the improvement in Dubai’s non-oil sector. Dubai’s PMI rose to 55.5 in March from a 12-month low of 54.1 in February.

David Owen, an Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, stated that the increase in the PMI was due to companies’ efforts to strengthen their supply side in response to the rapid expansion in activity levels. This suggests that businesses are taking measures to prepare for future growth and maintain their momentum.

The data further revealed Dubai’s construction companies saw a notable increase in output expansion, the highest since September, due to a rise in new orders in March.

This resulted in an acceleration in job creation, inventory, and employment growth, which was the fastest since January 2018.

To meet the requirements of new and ongoing projects, companies bought more raw materials, causing their input stocks to grow at the fastest pace since May 2018.

Vendor efforts to improve supplier delivery times have been largely unsuccessful, with only slight improvements seen since the record set 3.5 years ago in February.

There has also been an increase in construction input prices, pushing companies to offer discounts to maintain sales. However, the outlook for future activity is not optimistic, with only 10% of survey participants expecting output growth over the next year.