Kenya’s private sector activity dropped in August to its lowest level since May, with cash flow problems hurting performance, according to the latest survey report.
The market Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for manufacturing and services fell to 52.9 from 54.1 in July.
Over the month, exports experienced the slowest growth in 21 months, with tea earnings taking a tumble.
“The rate of growth slowed marginally from July in part due to sales from abroad rising at the weakest rate in the current 21-month sequence of expansion,” said the Stanbic report in part.
In March, activity in the Kenyan private sector grew at a slightly weaker pace, reflected by a fall in the PMI, from 51.2 in February to 51.0 in March, the lowest point since November 2017.
Thus, the index edged closer to the critical 50 point threshold that separates expansion from contraction.
Moreover, overall growth in new orders weakened, despite a sharp rise in new business from overseas markets. The slowdown led firms to increase their in-take of workers only marginally.
Input cost inflation softened markedly to an over two-year low resulting to stable output prices from the previous month.
