This archive report was first published on 3 September 2021.
Kenya's private sector economy showed signs of recovery in August, with the Stanbic Bank Kenya Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rising to 51.1 points from 50.6 in July.
According to the survey, the increase in sales led companies to expand their output, and the accumulation of workload encouraged them to add to their workforces.
The Purchasing Managers' Index noted that there was an increase in domestic demand in most sectors, and rising orders from clients in the Middle East and Europe boosted overall export demand.
“Business conditions in the Kenyan private sector economy improved for a fourth straight month in August. Furthermore, the rate of growth picked up as firms saw a faster expansion in new business compared to July. Job creation also strengthened,” the report noted.
However, business confidence fell to a near-record low, with only one-in-five surveyed firms projecting output to grow over the next 12 months.
“The outlook for future activity slipped to almost the weakest in the series history over August and was only slightly above April’s record low. Reports of ongoing economic instability linked to the pandemic meant that only around one in five surveyed firms projected output to grow over the next 12 months,” it noted.
