Egypt Non-Oil Private Sector Contracts In July

(RTTNews) - Egypt's non-oil private sector contracted in July, as output, new orders and employment dropped, survey figures from Emirates NBD and Markit Economics showed Tuesday.

The seasonally adjusted Emirates NBD Egypt Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, fell to 49.2 in July from 50.2 in the previous month.

Any reading below 50 indicates contraction, while a score above 50 suggests expansion in the sector.

New orders dropped slightly in July. New export orders also fell for the second time in the past three months, due to subdued demand conditions.

Firms decreased their staffing strength for the second straight month in July and the rate of job shedding was faster than in June.

On the price front, input prices rose sharply in July, led by the weakness of the Egyptian pound and higher wages. This forced companies to increase their selling prices, albeit slight overall.