Saudi Arabian private-sector activity eases off - The National

The rate of private-sector business expansion in Saudi Arabia eased slightly last month as new orders declined, a survey released yesterday shows.

Despite the dip, the strength of the data suggested the economy was shrugging off the impact of the global slowdown, said SABB HSBC, which compiled the purchasing managers' index (PMI).

"Saudi Arabia's PMI score remained strong in December as the domestic economy continued to sidestep the worst effects of the global slowdown," Simon Williams, a regional chief economist for HSBC, wrote in a research note.

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