Purchasing managers’ index basically unchanged in October: Private sector business conditions were largely unchanged in October, according to the Markit / Emirates NBD PMI gauge (pdf), which dipped to 48.6 from 48.7 in September. While the drop is effectively immaterial, it was the second consecutive dip in confidence after the confidence measure briefly broke the 50 point mark in July and August. October’s reading is the lowest in 2018.

New orders did decline, but purchasing sees rebound: The decline came in response to a further fall in new orders and output during October. But the fall in output and orders was milder than in September, while purchasing activity improved and inflation continued to ease.

The private sector is still pressured by reform: The decline in suggests that private sector activity is still weighed down by the economic reform program. One third of the companies surveyed said they are confident that output will rise and business activity will expand over the next 12 months.