Mubasher: The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data for the UAE and Saudi Arabia indicated the above the neutral 50 level for February 2026, while data for Egypt slightly approached it, according to a report by Emirates NBD Research.
The S&P Global PMI survey for the UAE ticked up to 55 in February, which reflected an increase from 54.9 in the previous month. This marked the fastest pace of expansion in the non-oil private sector since February 2025, while output saw a more marked acceleration from January as it expanded at the quickest rate since April 2024.
Over 30% of respondents saw an uptick in business activity in February 2026 compared with just 6% that noted a decline, with firms noting marketing and promotions and government support as being some of the drivers of this.
For Dubai, the S&P Global PMI survey was at 54.6 in February, down from 55.9 in January. There was a slowdown in output and new orders, though both measures remained well above the neutral 50 level that delineates expansion from contraction, with businesses noting that new projects, AI adoption, strong tourism activity, and a growing population were all supportive.
Moreover, Dubai’s employment rose at the fastest pace in two years despite a modest decline in business optimism.
The Riyad Bank PMI survey for Saudi Arabia was at 56.1 in February, down from 56.3 in January 2026. While this was the lowest reading for the survey in six months (6M), the survey is still comfortably above the neutral 50 level and remains indicative of robust growth in the non-oil private sector.
The Kingdom’s PMI reflected a slowdown in output growth to its lowest level since August 2025, though it remained at a rapid pace, with over a fifth of respondents citing an increase in business activity compared with only 1% seeing a decline.
Meanwhile, the S&P Global PMI survey for Egypt slipped to 48.9 in February, down from 49.8 in January. This marked the second sub-50 contractionary reading in a row, following the first two expansionary prints in 10 months seen in November and December 2025.
Egypt’s headline reading remained above the average of the past several years, however, and remains consistent with GDP growth of around 4.5% which is broadly in line with our projections.
On an annual basis, PMI data for the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt signaled an above the neutral 50 level with a downward performance for February 2025.
