This archive report was first published on 5 October 2021.
Kenya's economy has been sending mixed signals, with September registering the highest employment rate since January, according to the Stanbic Bank Kenya Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) survey.
Published on October 5, 2021, the survey revealed that the agriculture and construction sectors saw the highest rate of employment, but the future outlook for output remains relatively low due to uncertainty around inflation and COVID-19.
The PMI index fell to a five-month low of 50.4 points from 51.1 in August, with July's PMI standing at 50.6. The decline was attributed to rising living costs, which weighed on consumer spending and new orders.
Businesses reported that the price hike of petrol, diesel, and kerosene drove a sharper rate of both input cost and output charge inflation. As a result, firms raised their selling charges to the greatest extent since February to protect their profit margins.
While export demand expanded by the fastest rate in 13 months, the improvement in domestic demand was negatively affected by a rise in output prices, according to Stanbic Bank's Fixed Income and Currency Strategist Kuria Kamau.
