PMI: A flurry of PMI data for August was released yesterday across different African countries. In Ghana, the index remains in expansionary territory coming in at 51.9 from 50.5 in July.
The respondents cited a significant improvement in output and business activity. The report cited one of the strongest improvements in business conditions in the past two years. In Uganda, the index was above the 50 mark, coming in at 51.6 in August. Despite declining from 53.9 in July, business conditions remain upbeat with business purchases increasing and output across the economy remaining robust.
In Kenya, despite domestic and foreign liquidity challenges, the index lifted to expansionary territory to 50.6 in August, up from 45.5 in July. According to respondents, the calm in the political arena has helped boost demand. The improvement is marred by high input costs that continue to negate overall business operations. In Mozambique, despite the index remaining in expansionary territory as well at 50.4 in August, it represents a drop from 51.9 in July.
This was on the back of a slowdown in sales across the market. Panelists cited that there was a slowdown in business growth. Finally, in Zambia, the output dipped into contractionary territory to 49.2 from 51.0 in July. The report cited constrained liquidity conditions that further exacerbated activity across various sectors of the economy.
